The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of neoadjuvant chemoradiation on tumor EGFR expression in patients with locally advanced rectal adenocarcinoma. A total of 53 patients with rectal adenocarcinoma were studied.
EGFR expression in the pretreatment biopsies and in the resected specimens was assessed with immunohistochemistry. An increase of EGFR expression during chemoradiation may be associated with significantly shorter DFS and OS.
The increase of EGFR could identify a population of patients in whom the effect of the treatment with anti-EGFR therapy should be studied.