Response Prediction after Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Colon Cancer Using CT Tumor Regression Grade: A Preliminary Study

PURPOSE: To investigate whether CT-based tumor regression grade (ctTRG) can be used to predict the response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in colon cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 53 patients were enrolled. Two radiologists independently assessed the ctTRG using the length, thickness, layer pattern, and luminal and extraluminal appearance of the tumor. Changes in tumor volume were also analyzed using the 3D Slicer software. We evaluated the association between pathologic TRG (pTRG) and ctTRG. Patients with Rödel’s TRG of 2, 3, or 4 were classified as responders. In terms of predicting responder and pathologic complete remission (pCR), receiver operating characteristic was compared between ctTRG and tumor volume change. RESULTS: There was a moderate correlation between ctTRG and pTRG (ρ = -0.540, p < 0.001), and the interobserver agreement was substantial (weighted κ = 0.672). In the prediction of responder, there was no significant difference between ctTRG and volumetry (Az = 0.749, criterion: ctTRG ≤ 3 for ctTRG, Az = 0.794, criterion: ≤ -27.1% for volume, p = 0.53). Moreover, there was no significant difference between the two methods in predicting pCR (p = 0.447). CONCLUSION: ctTRG might predict the response to NAC in colon cancer. The diagnostic performance of ctTRG was comparable to that of CT volumetry.