Transarterial infusion chemotherapy, microsphere embolization effective for gastroesophageal cancer

Transarterial infusion chemotherapy with microsphere embolization is an effective treatment option for gastroesophageal junction cancer with hepatic metastasis, a recent study has found.

Sixty patients were randomly assigned to receive transarterial infusion chemotherapy either with (group A; n=30) or without (group B control; n=30) microsphere embolization for gastroesophageal cancer. Both groups also received transarterial chemoembolization for hepatic metastasis. Outcomes were short-term efficacy and safety, evaluated according to WHO criteria.

The median survival time was 19 and 13 months in groups A and B, respectively. Meanwhile, the 12-, 18-, and 24-month survival rates were 93.3 percent, 60.0 percent, and 23.3 percent in group A, and 60.0 percent, 30.0 percent, and 3.3 percent in group B, respectively. The between-group difference in survival rate was statistically significant (p=0.002).

In both groups, the primary cause of death was tumour recurrence and metastasis, followed by cachexia and upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Eating difficulties in all 60 patients had stabilized or improved after 2 months of therapy, but the average improvement in dysphagia score was greater in group A vs B.

Similarly, 27 of 52 group A patients with positive faecal occult blood tested negative after 5 days of treatment, as opposed to only 5 of 25 group B patients with similarly positive samples.

Toxicities observed included nausea, vomiting, bone marrow suppression, fever, and pain, all of which occurred with comparable frequencies between groups and were observed during and after the treatment.

“Arterial infusion chemotherapy plus microsphere embolization for the treatment of gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma with liver metastasis can rapidly reduce primary and metastatic tumour size, as well as relieve patient symptoms. This treatment prolonged patient survival and improved quality of life, making it an effective therapeutic option,” the researchers said.