Chemoimmunotherapy Followed by Surgery for Oligometastatic Esophagogastric Cancer: (TORO Protocol)

What this study is about

Esophageal cancer and cancers of the gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) are among the most common malignancies worldwide. The outcome for these patients remains very poor. Patients with limited spread of their cancer (oligometastatic disease) have a better prognosis than those with widespread disease. Recent advances in treatment therapies, including use of pre-operative immunotherapy, surgery and/or targeted radiation (SBRT) may help to prolong lifespan in patients with oligometastatic disease. Patients will undergo treatment for their oligometastatic esophageal or gastric cancer with pre-operative chemoimmunotherapy followed by surgery and possibly SBRT to evaluate the value of adding surgery and possibly SBRT to their treatment.

Who can join (things the study team will check)

✅ You may be able to join if…

• Histologically-proven cT1-4aN0-3M1 adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus, or EGJ according to the 8th edition of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) TNM classification for Esophageal Cancer;
• Oligometastatic disease, which is defined as a maximum of five metastatic lesions, that is treatable by surgical resection or radiation. These five lesions can be present in a maximum of two organs (eg, liver, lung or adrenal gland). Lymph nodes are not counted as an organ. If metastatic retroperitoneal or supraclavicular lymph nodes are present, this lymph node site counts as one metastatic lesion, and together with the possible metastases in organs cannot exceed the number of five lesions.
• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status of 0 or 1;
• Adequate cardiac and respiratory function by standard electrocardiogram and additional diagnostics in case of cardiopulmonary complaints or comorbidity (i.e. lung function test, or echocardiography)
• Adequate blood work parameters for systemic therapy as per treating medical oncologist in terms of ANC, platelet count and hemoglobin.
• Adequate renal function (glomerular filtration rate >50 mL/min or serum creatinine ≤1.5x upper level of normal (ULN)) and adequate liver function (total bilirubin < 2.5x ULN and alanine transaminase (ALT) < 3x ULN);
• A negative serum pregnancy test in women of child-bearing potential during screening period.
• Age >18 and <80 years old

🚫 You may not be able to join if…

• Patients with overt peritoneal or pleural dissemination, as detected on PET-CT or regular CT-scan. In patients in whom a diagnostic laparoscopy is indicated (to assess gastric involvement and the possibility to perform gastric tube reconstruction or to exclude peritoneal disease), tumor-positive cytology peritoneal fluid is also an exclusion criteria. Of note, positive microscopic peritoneal cytology which converts to negative after treatment is not an exclusion criteria (i.e. peritoneal or pleural fluid cytology must be negative at the time of enrollment, with no gross disease identified initially).
• Multiple bone or brain metastases - up to one solitary bone met and/one solitary brain met is allowable as a metastatic site, if curative ablative radiotherapy can be given at the discretion of the treating physicians. Patients with multiple brain metastases or multiple bone metastases will be excluded.
• Any other condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, would make the patient unsuitable for the study; particularly any condition that would make the patient unfit for surgery, radiation, chemotherapy or a combination thereof.
• Active autoimmune disease that has required systemic treatment in the past 2 years (i.e., with use of disease modifying agents, corticosteroids, or immunosuppressive drugs) except vitiligo or resolved childhood asthma/atopy. Replacement therapy, such as thyroxine, insulin, or physiologic corticosteroid replacement therapy for adrenal or pituitary insufficiency, is not considered a form of systemic treatment and is allowed. Use of non-systemic steroids is permitted.
• Patients with active pregnancy, or lactation.

Where this trial is running

• Toronto General Hospital, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Who to contact

Frances Allison · 437-233-4303 · Frances.Allison@uhn.ca

It's completely normal to call and ask questions before deciding anything. Mention the study ID: NCT06668454.