Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The clinical benefits of neoadjuvant bevacizumab plus chemotherapy in locally advanced gastric cancer patients are controversial. This study intended to evaluate the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant bevacizumab plus chemotherapy in these patients. METHODS: In this retrospective study, 71 locally advanced gastric cancer patients receiving neoadjuvant bevacizumab plus chemotherapy or neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone were divided into bevacizumab plus chemo group (N = 23) and chemo group (N = 48). RESULTS: Objective response rate (52.2% vs. 35.4%), disease control rate (91.3% vs. 81.3%), surgical resection rate (95.7% vs. 85.4%), R0 resection rate (87.0% vs. 75.0%), and the proportion of patients with tumor regression grade 0-1 (31.8% vs. 17.1%) tended to increase in bevacizumab plus chemo group versus chemo group, although there was no statistical significance. The 48-month progression-free survival (PFS) rates were 58.3% and 33.4% in bevacizumab plus chemo group and chemo group. The 48-month overall survival (OS) rates were 65.1% and 46.5% in bevacizumab plus chemo group and chemo group, respectively. PFS tended to ascend, but OS did not vary in bevacizumab plus chemo group versus chemo group. Bevacizumab plus chemo (vs. chemo) independently related to longer PFS [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.263, P = 0.015], but not OS (HR = 0.207, P = 0.056) in locally advanced gastric cancer patients. The incidence of grade 3-4 adverse events did not vary between groups (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Neoadjuvant bevacizumab plus chemotherapy achieves higher treatment response and longer survival to some extent, with tolerable adverse events versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone in locally advanced gastric cancer patients, but its application needs further verification.