mens, possibly including biologically targeted drugs, could be considered in those with FDG-nonavid tumors.
Key words Response guided neoadjuvant treatment · Locally advanced gastric cancer
Induction chemotherapy in gastric cancerPrognosis in gastric cancer is highly dependent on tumor stage at presentation. Western patients with locally advanced tumors who do not receive perioperative treatment have a poor prognosis 20%-30% 5-year survival [1]. Improving results with extended surgery, as in Japan, has not been reproduced in the Western world [2][3][4]. The potential benefi ts of giving chemotherapy before surgery are the downsizing and downstaging of the primary tumor and lymph node metastases, treating micrometastases early in the course of treatment, increasing the rate of curative resections, and alleviating tumor-related symptoms. A new and important aspect is the possibility to test in vivo the chemosensitivity of the primary tumor. This might infl uence the administration and the regimen applied postoperatively in the adjuvant setting. The feasibility of neoadjuvant treatment in locally advanced gastric cancer has been proven by numerous phase II studies with different treatment regimens [5][6][7][8]. Compared with the prognosis in historical controls, the prognosis of the neoadjuvantly treated patients seemed to be improved and toxicity was moderate in most studies [6,9]. In the preoperative phase, acceptance, compliance, and tolerance of the patients was high and the complete dose could be given in nearly all patients.Recently, two randomized phase III studies with perioperative chemotherapy, showing a survival benefi t for patients with perioperative chemotherapy followed