Advanced stage gastric cancer and neoadjuvant chemotherapy Our experience in surgical resectability

BACKGROUND: In the last years the incidence of gastric cancer is changed as the complementary therapy to surgical treatment especially about the advanced stage gastric cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We have analyzed the patients treated at Unit of General Surgery and Organ Transplantation of University Hospital of Parma from 1/1/2009 to 30/9/2012. The cases surgically treated after neoadiuvant therapy were compared to patients not treated with neoadiuvant therapy. The choice to neoadiuvant therapy was decided on locally advanced disease and low comorbidity. RESULTS: The cases surgically treated were 93, in 9 cases were treated with neoadiuvant therapy. The histotype in neoadiuvant cases was an intestinale type 3 cases, a diffuse type 3 cases and no classificable sec. Lauren 3 cases. The average of number of lymphnodes removed was 22.5 in total gastrectomy and 15.7 nodes in partial gastrectomy. On RECIST criteria the response to neoadiuvant chemotherapy were in 2 cases a partial response and in the others 7 cases the disease remained stable. CONCLUSION: In our experience as in literature, the neoadiuvant therapy can reduce staging, increases the R0 resection, should proposed in young patients with low comorbidity.