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OBJECTIVES The goal of this study was to investigate the patterns and risk factors for recurrence in patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma with a pathological complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT). METHODS Between January 2008 and December 2018, a total of 96 patients with pCR were enrolled in this study. Lymph nodes with a pCR [LN-ypCR response (+)] were defined as those lymph nodes without residual tumour but with the presence of treatment response to nCRT. Prognostic factors for recurrence-free survival (RFS) were analysed with Cox proportional hazards models and Fine-Gray competing risk models. Lymph node (LN) stations were counted according to the Japan Esophageal Society classification. RESULTS The median follow-up time was 51.5 months. Recurrence occurred in 15 cases (15.6%) with a 9.9-month median time to recurrence and a 15.6-month median survival after recurrence. The majority of recurrent diseases developed within the first 2 years postoperatively. Distant recurrences were detected in 14 cases (14.6%), in which the most common recurrence sites were no.104 LN and the lung, followed by no.16 LN. The mean RFS in the whole cohort was 116.6 months. The LN-ypCR response (+) was identified as the independent prognostic factor for worse RFS in both the multivariate Cox model and the Fine–Gray competing risk model (P  =   0.001 and P  =   0.002, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Relapse is not rare in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma cases with pCR after nCRT. Distant recurrences, the predominant pattern of relapse, occur primarily within the first 2 years after oesophagectomy. Patients with pCR with an LN-ypCR response (+) have a higher risk for postoperative recurrence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The role of adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with pathological lymph node‐positive (pN+) resectable esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unclear. We aimed to explore whether adjuvant chemotherapy could improve the overall survival (OS) of patients with pN+ ESCC and whether oral chemotherapy could be used as an alternative to intravenous chemotherapy. Methods: The patients were divided into two groups: a surgery plus chemotherapy group (S + CT group, 400 patients) and a surgery alone group (S group, 582 patients). Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to create patient groups that were balanced across several covariates (n = 331 in each group). The survival rates of patients receiving oral chemotherapy (69 patients with S‐1 and 68 patients with tegafur tablets) and intravenous chemotherapy (263 patients) were compared using the Kaplan–Meier method. Results: In the overall study cohort, the 3‐year OS was significantly higher in the S + CT group than in the S group (66.3% vs. 49.9%, p < 0.001). These data were confirmed in the matched groups (3‐year OS, 72.9% vs. 62.0%, p < 0.001). Multivariate Cox regression analysis in the matched samples showed that adjuvant chemotherapy was an independent prognostic factor for ESCC (HR: 0.62, 95% CI: 0.50–0.76, p < 0.001). Patients who received oral chemotherapy had a similar OS as patients who received intravenous chemotherapy. Conclusions: Adjuvant chemotherapy could significantly improve the OS of patients with pN+ ESCC, and oral chemotherapy drugs might be a better option because of their similar efficacy but fewer side effects than intravenous chemotherapy. This conclusion warrants further study in prospective, randomized controlled trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The therapeutic effectiveness of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in bladder cancer varies among individuals. Identifying reliable predictors of response to these therapies is crucial for optimizing patient outcomes., Methods: This retrospective study analyzed 348 bladder cancer patients treated with ICIs, with additional validation using data from 248 patients at our institution who underwent PD-L1 immunohistochemical staining. We examined patient smoking history, clinicopathological characteristics, and immune phenotypes. The main focus was the correlation between smoking history and immunotherapy outcomes. Multivariate logistic and Cox proportional hazard regressions were used to adjust for confounders., Results: The study cohort comprised 348 bladder cancer patients receiving ICIs. Among them, 116 (33.3%) were never smokers, 197 (56.6%) were former smokers (median pack-years = 28), and 35 (10.1%) were current smokers (median pack-years = 40). Analysis revealed no statistically significant difference in overall survival across different smoking statuses (objective response rates were 11.4% for current smokers, 17.2% for never smokers, and 22.3% for former smokers; P = 0.142, 0.410, and 0.281, respectively). However, a notable trend indicated a potentially better response to immunotherapy in former smokers compared to current and never smokers. In the validation cohort of 248 patients from our institution, immunohistochemical analysis showed that PD-L1 expression was significantly higher in former smokers (55%) compared to current smokers (37%) and never smokers (47%). This observation underscores the potential influence of smoking history on the tumor microenvironment and its responsiveness to ICIs., Conclusion: In conclusion, our study demonstrates the importance of incorporating smoking history in predicting the response to immunotherapy in bladder cancer patients, highlighting its role in personalized cancer treatment approaches. Further research is suggested to explore the comprehensive impact of lifestyle factors on treatment outcomes., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Kong, Zou, Zhou, Huang, Lin, Fang, Chen, Zheng, Huang, Shen, Xie and Fan.)