Trial reportInternational journal of colorectal disease2026
Effect of prolonged interval between neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and surgery on pathological and oncological outcomes in locally advanced rectal cancer: a randomized controlled trial.
Trial report in International journal of colorectal disease, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03607370 (Timing for Rectal Surgery After ChST), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Timing for Rectal Surgery After ChST
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12 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundThe optimal interval between neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and total mesorectal excision (TME) in locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) remains controversial. This randomized controlled trial evaluated whether prolonging the interval between nCRT and surgery improves pathological response and oncological outcomes.
methodsAdult patients with histologically confirmed, MRI-staged II-III rectal adenocarcinoma located within 12 cm of the anal verge were randomized to undergo surgery at 8 weeks or 12 weeks after completion of long-course nCRT (50 Gy with concurrent 5-fluorouracil). The primary endpoint was pathological complete response (pCR; Dworak grade 4). Secondary endpoints included postoperative complications, surgical quality, disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), and patterns of recurrence.
resultsA total of 124 patients were analyzed (61 in the 8-week group and 63 in the 12-week group). Median time to surgery was 72 days (10.3 weeks) and 93 days (13.3 weeks), respectively. pCR was achieved in 14.8% vs 14.5% (p = 0.904). There were no significant differences in ypT stage, ypN stage, CRM positivity, or TME quality. Anastomotic leakage was numerically higher in the 12-week group (15.9% vs 4.9%). Three-year OS (76.3% vs 80.0%, p = 0.657) and DFS (62.9% vs 62.2%, p = 0.838) were comparable. Adjuvant chemotherapy was administered more frequently in the 8-week group (61.7% vs 39.7%, p = 0.015).
conclusionExtending the surgical interval from 8 to 12 weeks did not improve pathological response or oncological outcomes. These results should be interpreted cautiously in the context of evolving total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) strategies.
trial registrationClinicaltrialtrials.gov No. NCT03607370.
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