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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Oncol.
Sec. Gastrointestinal Cancers: Gastric and Esophageal Cancers
Volume 14 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1498675

Efficacy and prognosis biomarker of locally advanced ESCC patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and anti-PD-1 immunotherapy

Provisionally accepted
Shuman Li Shuman Li 1*Jie Zhou Jie Zhou 2*Qianli Wang Qianli Wang 1*Jiewei Chen Jiewei Chen 3*Yapeng Qi Yapeng Qi 4*
  • 1 Department of Oncology, Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China
  • 2 Guangxi International Travel Healthcare Centre (Port Clinic of Nanning Customs District), nanning, Central African Republic
  • 3 Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center (SYSUCC), Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
  • 4 Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Abstract: Immunotherapy has rapidly advanced in tumor treatment. In esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), its use in neoadjuvant therapy has shown promising results. Several phase III clinical trials have confirmed that immunodetection site inhibitors in neoadjuvant therapy can enhance the pathologically complete response (pCR) rate. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 128 ESCC patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus anti-PD-1 immunotherapy at the Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University and Henan Cancer Hospital from July 2019 to November 2023. Results: Of the 128 patients, 31 (24.1%) achieved pCR, and 46 (35.9%) achieved a major pathological response (MPR). Female patients, low-level tumor abnormal protein (TAP) and moderate differentiation were significantly associated with a higher pCR rate and MPR rate. Besides pCR rate and MPR rate, low-level TAP and moderate differentiation had significantly longer PFS and OS. The mean PFS in the low-level TAP group was 42.4 months, significantly longer than the 28.5 months in the high-level TAP group (p = 0.019). The mean OS in the low-level TAP group was 43.7 months, compared to 30.5 months in the high-level TAP group (p = 0.027). Multivariate analysis showed that TAP and differentiation were independent prognostic factors for PFS and pCR rate was independent prognostic factor for OS in ESCC patients treated with anti-PD-1. Thus, lower TAP levels predict a better response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in advanced ESCC patients. In clinical practice, serum TAP levels before neoadjuvant therapy can serve as a useful tool for predicting the efficacy of this combined treatment.

    Keywords: esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, TAP, Neoadjuvant Therapy, Prognosis biomarker, anti-PD-1 immunotherapy ESCC: esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

    Received: 19 Sep 2024; Accepted: 19 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Li, Zhou, Wang, Chen and Qi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Shuman Li, Department of Oncology, Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450008, Henan Province, China
    Jie Zhou, Guangxi International Travel Healthcare Centre (Port Clinic of Nanning Customs District), nanning, Central African Republic
    Qianli Wang, Department of Oncology, Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450008, Henan Province, China
    Jiewei Chen, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center (SYSUCC), Guangzhou, 510060, Guangdong Province, China
    Yapeng Qi, Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450000, Henan Province, China

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