Abstract
BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) followed by R0 resection is regarded as a standard treatment strategy for locally advanced gastric cancer (GC); however, the response to systemic chemotherapy remains unsatisfactory. Continuous intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy (CAIC) is a new method, compared with systematic chemotherapy, it can deliver chemotherapy drugs more accurately, so as to achieve higher surgical conversion rate. This study aimed to explore the efficacy and safety of CAIC in locally advanced GC patients. METHODS: In this retrospective pilot study, four patients with histologically confirmed locally advanced GC were identified from a tertiary hospital between May 2018 and December 2018. Clinic stage was belonged to T4N1-3M0 in all cases with potential probability for surgery. All cases received three cycles of NAC by CAIC with oxaliplatin (100 mg on day 1) plus oral S-1 (80 mg/m(2)/day twice daily for 14 days) (SOX). Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scans and pathological examinations were performed to evaluate chemotherapeutic response based on the tumor regression grade (TRG) and post-neoadjuvant pathological Tumor Node Metastasis (ypTNM) staging. All cases were regularly followed up with face-to-face interviews at outpatient, abdominal enhanced CT scan and serum tumor markers were be requested at 3-month intervals for up to 1 year postoperatively. RESULTS: The obstruction was significantly alleviated after three cycles of CAIC. Contrast-enhanced CT scans showed decreased tumor volume to some extent, along with lymph node shrinkage after treatment. Radical (R0) resection was achieved in all cases. Histopathological analysis showed tumor downstaging in three cases and upstaging in one case. The tumor response to treatment demonstrated TRG1a in one case, TRG1b in one case, and TRG2 in two cases, with an overall tumor regression rate of 100%. No obvious adverse events or perioperative complications were observed during or following treatment. All cases were alive without tumor recurrence or progression after the 1-year postoperative follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Our study may shed light on super-selective CAIC as an effective method for improving the NAC response in locally advanced GC. Future studies with a larger sample sizes and long-term outcomes are required for a final conclusion.