Advantages of prolonged administration of low-dose cytostatic drugs in neoadjuvant treatment of thoracic esopgageal cancer

Patients of the studied group received cisplatin and fluorouracil concurrent with 30 Gy external radiation therapy. Major side effects in the studied and in the control groups included nausea, asthenia and leukopenia. The overall short-term efficacy was 80 % in the studied group and 17,8 % in the control group. A significant increase in the frequency of radical surgeries was observed for patients treated with preoperative concurrent chemotherapy and radiation therapy as compared to the control group (72,9 % versus 35 %). No statistically significant differences in the frequency of postoperative complications and lethality between groups were found. One-year survival rate was higher by 22,5 % and 2-year survival rate by 28,1 % in the studied group than in the control group. Three-year survival rate was 24,3 % in the studied group. There were no survivors at a 3-year follow-up in the control group.