Towards personalized treatment of T2N0 rectal cancer: A systematic review of long‐term oncological outcomes of neoadjuvant therapy followed by local excision

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Total mesorectal excision (TME) remains the treatment of choice in T2N0 tumors. However, evidence suggest that one‐size‐fits‐all approach is not always beneficial for this group of patients. The aim of this study is to synthesize data on long‐term outcomes after neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) followed by local excision (LE) in T2N0 rectal cancer patients in the perspective of a rectal‐preserving strategy. METHODS: A systematic search of PubMed/MEDLINE, SCOPUS, and Web of Science databases was conducted until October 2021 to identify studies comparing LE after NAT and TME or reporting oncologic outcomes after conservative approach. A pooled analysis was conducted using a fixed‐effect model in the case of non‐significant heterogeneity (P > 0.1), and a random effect model (DerSimonian–Laird method) when significant heterogeneity was present (P < 0.1) CRD42022300344. RESULTS: Nine studies were included in the analysis. Three of them were comparative studies. The pooled 3‐year DFS, 5‐year DFS, 3‐year OS, 5‐year OS, local and distant recurrence rates were 92.8% (95% CI 81.6–99.5%), 91.3% (95% CI 88.3–94.3%), 96.1% (95% CI 90.5–100%), 72.6% (95% CI 57.5–87.7%), 4% (95% CI 18–63%), and 4.9% (95% CI 2–7.8%), respectively, in subjects treated with NAT followed by LE. No heterogeneity was found for all these analyses, except for the 5‐year OS sub‐analysis (I (2) 95.5%, P < 0.001). Complete pathological response (ypT0) rate after NAT and LE ranges from 26.7% to 59%. CONCLUSION: LE following neoadjuvant CRT may provide comparable survival benefit to radical surgery for patients with clinical stage T2N0 in selected patients although the evidence is still limited to provide solid recommendations. A personalized therapeutic approach taking into account tumor and patient‐related factors should be considered.