Accuracy of pathologic examination in detection of complete response after chemoradiation for esophageal cancer. Academic Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • BACKGROUND: Although a substantial proportion of patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiation for invasive esophageal cancer develop a pathologic complete response (pCR), these patients nonetheless have a poor 5-year survival rate. We hypothesized that routine pathologic examination fails to identify some residual cancer. METHODS: Patients undergoing esophagectomy for cancer at 2 tertiary care centers were identified. Archived tumor blocks were retrieved for patients with pCR, sectioned at 50-mum intervals and reexamined for residual cancer. RESULTS: Seventy patients underwent neoadjuvant chemoradiation. Tumor blocks were available for 23 of 26 complete responders. A total of 159 blocks were reexamined. One patient was found to have a possible focus of residual invasive adenocarcinoma versus high-grade dysplasia. The remaining 22 patients had no residual disease. CONCLUSIONS: A more aggressive examination protocol for postchemoradiation esophagectomy specimens may not result in significant upstaging. Inadequate pathologic examination is likely not a major factor in the suboptimal survival in patients with pCR.

publication date

  • May 1, 2007

Research

keywords

  • Adenocarcinoma
  • Carcinoma, Squamous Cell
  • Esophageal Neoplasms

Identity

Scopus Document Identifier

  • 34147130310

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2007.01.002

PubMed ID

  • 17434367

Additional Document Info

volume

  • 193

issue

  • 5