Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy for Stage II or III Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

The goal of this retrospective study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) in patients with Stage II or Stage III esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).Between January 2004 and December 2014, a total of 86 patients underwent surgical resection in conjunction with preoperative CRT for esophageal SCC in our Institute.A pathological complete response was achieved in 38.7% of patients with Stage II cancer and 20% of patients with Stage III. Postoperative complications were observed in 61.3% of Stage II and 76.4% of Stage III patients. The 5-year overall survival rate (OS) was 83.2% in Stage II and 22.8% in Stage III (p=0.0001). The 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate was 67.9% in Stage II and 29.9% in Stage III (p=0.0007).Neoadjuvant CRT may improve OS and DFS rates in patients with Stage II esophageal SCC.