Background: The purposes of neoadjuvant chemotherapy are to tumor size to improve the tumor removal rate, extend survival, and prevent metastasis. In this study, the importance of CRP/albumin ratio and CEA/albumin ratio in the prediction of neoadjuvant treatment response in gastric cancer patients was evaluated. Methods: This study retrospectively included 135 gastric cancer patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy at Çukurova University Balcalı Hospital between January 2018 and December 2023. Preoperative CRP/albumin and CEA/albumin ratios were compared according to treatment response and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the potential importance of these ratios in predicting pathological response. Results: The mean age of the 135 patients was 58.79 ± 10.83 (min = 26–max = 78). The CRP/albumin and CEA/albumin ratios were found to be significantly lower in patients who did not respond to neoadjuvant therapy. Each 1-unit increase in the CRP/albumin ratio was associated with a 1.16-fold decrease in the odds of pathological complete response to neoadjuvant therapy. Both CRP/albumin and CEA/albumin ratios were found to be significant in distinguishing neoadjuvant therapy response. The optimal cut-off value was 2.74 for the CRP/albumin ratio (sensitivity = 60%, specificity = 78.4%) and 1.40 for the CEA/albumin ratio (sensitivity = 74.2%, specificity = 67.6%). Values below these cut-off points favored neoadjuvant therapy response. Pathological complete response to neoadjuvant therapy was 4.75 times higher in patients with a CRP/albumin ratio below 2.74 and 5.14 times higher in patients with a CEA/albumin ratio below 1.40. Conclusions: Findings demonstrate that in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer receiving neoadjuvant treatment, CRP/Albumin and CEA/Albumin ratios are significant markers of pathological response.

Background/Aims: The treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which accounts for 90% of all liver cancers, is highly varied. The use of second-line treatments following progression on first-line atezolizumab and bevacizumab (Atez/Bev) for advanced HCC remains controversial. The aim of this study was to analyze the real-world clinical results of second-line treatments in progression after Atez/Bev and to determine the factors affecting prognosis. Materials and Methods: Fifty-eight patients treated with second-line sorafenib, regorafenib, and cabozantinib for progression after first-line Atez/Bev for advanced/metastatic HCC from 20 centers in Türkiye between October 2020 and June 2024 were retrospectively analyzed. Responses were evaluated by Response criteria, specifically Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST v1.1) criteria. Median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were computed with the Kaplan–Meier method. The Cox regression model was utilized to analyze multivariate analyses. Results: About 82.8% of the patients were male and the median age of the whole group was 62 (range, 18-78) years. All patients progressed after first-line Atez/Bev and were given second-line treatment. The most commonly used second-line treatment option was sorafenib (70.7%), followed by regorafenib (12.1%) and cabozantinib (10.3%). Both median PFS (4.1 months) and median OS (7.8 months) were longer in patients treated with sorafenib compared to other treatments. In univariate analyses, Child–Pugh score B, alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels (>200 ng/mL), extrahepatic spread, and Prognostic Nutritional Index (PNI) < 47.6 substantially raised the risk of overall mortality. Multivariate analysis showed that extrahepatic spread (HR (Hazard ratio): 0.41, P = .012), PNI level (HR: 0.24, P =.005), and AFP level (HR:1.97, P = .049) were independent predictors of OS. Conclusion: Although second-line therapies after Atez/Bev show different degrees of efficacy, survival rates are consistent with the literature. Extrahepatic spread, AFP level, and PNI level are the main prognostic factors. In light of this information, personalized treatment strategies may improve outcomes for this challenging patient group. Cite this article as: Majidova N, Yaslıkaya S, Mıldanoglu MM, et al. Efficacy of second-line treatments after atezolizumab and bevacizumab in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma and related prognostic factors: A multicenter study by the turkish oncology group (TOG). Turk J Gastroenterol. 2025;36(5):293-301.

Background: Adenocarcinoma arising from the ampulla of Vater is an extremely rare neoplasm, and there are limited data regarding frontline therapy for metastatic disease. We investigated the outcomes of first-line treatment with FOLFIRINOX by comparing it with other treatments in patients with advanced ampullary adenocarcinoma. Methods: We included 123 patients with advanced ampullary adenocarcinoma who were treated with frontline FOLFIRINOX (n = 32), fluorouracil (FU)-based chemotherapy (n = 20), and gemcitabine-based chemotherapy (n = 65) between August 2007 and January 2024 in this retrospective study. The median progression-free survival (mPFS) and overall survival (mOS) according to treatment and clinicopathological features were calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method. Results: The median age of the patients was 62 years (range, 36–78), and 75,6% of the patients had an ECOG performance status of 0–1. The mOS were 13 months (95% CI, 10.6–14.4), 11 months (95% CI, 10.6–14.4), and 12 months (95% CI, 10.6–14.4), respectively [p = 0.865]. There were no significant differences in OS among the chemotherapeutic agents according to histological subtypes. However, FOLFIRINOX and FU-based treatments appeared more effective in the intestinal subtype, while gemcitabine-based therapies were less effective. In the pancreaticobiliary subtype, FU-based therapies yielded a shorter outcome compared to FOLFIRINOX and gemcitabine-based therapies. Grade 3 or 4 hematologic toxicities were higher in patients treated with FOLFIRINOX. Conclusions: In advanced ampullary adenocarcinoma, despite higher toxicity, frontline FOLFIRINOX showed a trend toward an OS benefit in the intestinal subtype while providing a similar outcome in the pancreaticobiliary subtype.

Background: Left ventricular false tendon (LVFT) is a fibromuscular band crossing the left ventricular cavity. And Chiari’s network (CN) is a highly mobile, mesh-like, echogenic structure in right atrium. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the coexistence of LVFT in patients with CN. CN patients were examined with live/real-time three-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) for visualization of LVFT. Results: This is a single-center prospective study of 49 patients with CN. In literature studies, the average ratios of LVFT were 22% in the normal population. In our study, an increased ratio of LVFT (n = 31, 63.3%) was found in CN patients evaluated with a three-dimensional TTE (63.3% versus 22%) (p = 0.01). The interatrial septal aneurysm was found in 31 (63.3%) patients with CN. And, the positive contrast echocardiography examination was determined in 22 (61.1%) patients with CN. Conclusions: Our study reveals that CN is associated with LVFT and is also associated with cardiac anomalies like an interatrial septal aneurysm, and atrial septal defect. And LVFT can be evaluated better with three-dimensional TTE than with traditional two-dimensional TTE. Patients with CN should be evaluated more carefully by three-dimensional echocardiography as they can be in synergy in terms of the cardiac pathologies they accompany.

Background: Achieving no evidence of disease (NED) in HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC) has been proposed as a response-state marker for durable disease control. However, its clinical significance and predictive factors are not yet well established. Methods: In this multicenter retrospective study at 13 oncology centers in Turkey, we analyzed 118 patients with stage IV HER2-positive MBC who received trastuzumab-based first-line therapy and remained progression-free for at least 36 months. Patients were stratified by radiologically defined NED status according to RECIST v1.1. Clinicopathological features were compared between groups, and predictors of NED were identified using logistic regression. Progression-free survival (PFS) was estimated by Kaplan–Meier analysis and assessed with Cox regression. Results: Of the 118 patients, 55 (46.6%) achieved NED. Compared with patients who did not achieve NED, those attaining NED were younger (median 46 vs. 53 years, p = 0.013), had better ECOG performance status (p = 0.005), were more likely to have HER2 IHC 3+ status (p = 0.015), and higher histologic grade tumors (p = 0.013). In multivariable logistic regression, ECOG PS 0 (vs. 1 ; OR = 5.99, p = 0.005), HER2 IHC 3+ (vs. IHC 2+/ISH+; OR = 4.79, p = 0.035), and histologic grade ≤2 (vs. grade 3 ; OR = 0.25, p = 0.011) were independently associated with NED attainment. Patients who achieved NED had experienced significantly longer PFS than those who did not (median 131 months vs. 66 months; p < 0.005). In multivariate Cox regression, NED remained independently associated with prolonged PFS (HR = 0.24, p = 0.003). Metastasis-directed local therapy and treatment regimen (trastuzumab vs. trastuzumab + pertuzumab) were not independently associated with NED attainment or PFS. Conclusions: In this multicenter cohort of pre-selected long-term responders, nearly half of HER2-positive MBC patients achieved radiologic NED. Radiologic NED was independently associated with prolonged PFS within this enriched population. Factors associated with NED attainment included favorable ECOG performance status, HER2 IHC 3+ expression, and high tumor grade; given the wide confidence intervals, these estimates should be interpreted cautiously as exploratory and hypothesis-generating.

Background: Recent transcriptomic studies classify small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) into molecular subtypes driven by ASCL1, NEUROD1, POU2F3, and YAP1. This study evaluated an immunohistochemistry (IHC)-based subtyping framework using real-world data and assessed its ability to predict chemoimmunotherapy outcomes. Methods: Proteomic expression profiles were quantified by IHC in 100 patients with SCLC. Clinicopathological trajectories and overall survival (OS) were analyzed using a parsimonious multivariate Cox model designed to mitigate overfitting. Results: Significant subclonal heterogeneity was captured by co-dominant hybrid phenotypes, including SCLC-AN (9%) and SCLC-AP (5%). In the treatment-adjusted, parsimonious multivariate analysis, individual continuous biomarker expressions showed an independent association with ASCL1 percentage (HR = 1.011, p = 0.017). Traditional extensive-stage disease (HR = 3.801, 95% CI: 1.669–8.657, p = 0.001) and synchronous bone metastases (HR = 1.968, 95% CI: 1.074–3.604, p = 0.028) remained the only robust clinical predictors of poor OS. When adjusted for therapeutic interventions, first-line chemoimmunotherapy showed a strong protective numerical trend, reducing mortality risk by 49% (HR = 0.512, p = 0.060). Within the immunotherapy subgroup (n = 19), the NE-low group had a 100% response rate and a numerically longer median overall survival than the NE-high group (49.4 vs. 21.4 months; log-rank p = 0.080). Conclusions: Our pilot evaluation provides a clinically feasible routine IHC framework for characterizing subclonal mosaicism in SCLC.