The goal of this study was to prospectively evaluate multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) for the assessment of early response during neoadjuvant chemotherapy (CTx) of adenocarcinomas of the esophagogastric junction (AEG). We could show that MDCT based tumor volumetry is able to predict early response to treatment two weeks after initiation of CTx in patients with AEG and that a response evaluation with MDCT volumetry at that time is feasible and practicable. Furthermore a partial volume effect for early response evaluation with PET imaging could be excluded by comparing the standard uptake Values (SUV) with the MDCT data. The classic approach of tumor diameter measurements, however, failed to show significant correlation with histopathologic tumor regression. Nevertheless it has to be emphasised that only the decrease of the SUV, 14 days after initiation of the preoperative CTx showed a correlation with the patients disease free survival, whereas the change of tumor volume didn`t. Thus PET Imaging stays the golden standard for response evaluation for neoadjuvant chemotherapy, MDCT volumetry, however, is an alternative especially for people without an access to PET imaging.
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