Ten-year outcome of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery for esophageal cancer

The multicenter study CROSS in The Netherlands randomized patients with locally advanced esophageal or junctional cancer to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery or to surgery alone. Results of the study with median 147 months follow-up show better overall survival in the CRT group (HR 0.70; 95% CI 0.55-0.89). The effect of neoadjuvant CRT was not time-dependent. The absolute 10-year OS benefit was 13% (38% versus 25%). Neoadjuvant CRT reduced risk of death from esophageal cancer (HR 0.60; 95% CI 0.46-0.80) while death from other causes was similar between study arms.