The FOxTROT (Fluoropyrimidine, Oxaliplatin, and Targeted-Receptor pre-Operative Therapy [Panitumumab]) Trial

Seymour MT, Morton D. FOxTROT: an international randomised controlled trial in 1052 patients (pts) evaluating neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for colon cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2019 May;37(15 Suppl):3504-3504.

Conclusions: NAC was well tolerated and safe, with no increase in perioperative morbidity and a trend toward fewer serious postoperative complications. Evidence of histological regression was seen in 59% pts after NAC, including some pCRs. This resulted in marked histological downstaging and a halving of the rate of incomplete resections. We observed an improvement in 2-yr failure rate (HR=0.77), but this fell short of statistical significance (p=0.11). NAC for colon cancer improves surgical outcomes and can now be considered as a treatment option; longer follow-up and further trials are required to confirm the long-term benefits, refine its use and optimise case selection. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00647530


Foxtrot Collaborative Group. Feasibility of preoperative chemotherapy for locally advanced, operable colon cancer: the pilot phase of a randomised controlled trial. Lancet Oncol. 2012 Nov;13(11):1152-60.

The FOxTrOT website (University of Birmingham)

Stoma versus stent as a bridge to surgery for obstructive colon cancer

Veld JV, et al. Changes in Management of Left-Sided Obstructive Colon Cancer: National Practice and Guideline Implementation. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2019 Dec;17(12):1512-1520.

Free full-text. 

Results: A total of 2,587 patients were included (2,013 ER, 345 DS, and 229 SEMS). A trend was observed in reversal of ER (decrease from 86.2% to 69.6%) and SEMS (increase from 1.3% to 7.8%) after 2014, with an ongoing increase in DS (from 5.2% in 2009 to 22.7% in 2016). DS after 2014 was associated with more laparoscopic resections (66.0% vs 35.5%; P<.001) and more 2-stage procedures (41.5% vs 28.6%; P=.01) with fewer permanent stomas (14.7% vs 29.5%; P=.005). Overall, more laparoscopic resections (25.4% vs 13.2%; P<.001) and shorter total hospital stays (14 vs 15 days; P<.001) were observed after 2014. However, similar rates of primary anastomosis (48.7% vs 48.6%; P=.961), 90-day complications (40.4% vs 37.9%; P=.254), and 90-day mortality (6.5% vs 7.0%; P=.635) were observed.

CONCLUSIONS: Guideline revision resulted in a notable change from ER to BTS for LSOCC. This was accompanied by an increased rate of laparoscopic resections, more 2-stage procedures with a decreased permanent stoma rate in patients receiving DS as BTS, and a shorter total hospital stay. However, overall 90-day complication and mortality rates remained relatively high.

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