Real‐World Outcomes of Total Neoadjuvant Therapy Versus Standard Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy in Stage II–III Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer: A Comparative Cohort Study

Key Points

• This research compares the effectiveness of total neoadjuvant therapy and standard neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in advanced rectal cancer.
• Conducted a real-world cohort study on stage II-III locally advanced rectal cancer patients.
• Evaluated overall survival and recurrence rates after total neoadjuvant therapy versus standard treatment.
• Examined the role of post-treatment lymphovascular and perineural invasion in prognostic stratification.
• Total neoadjuvant therapy was associated with higher overall survival rates compared to standard chemoradiotherapy.
• Recurrence-based endpoints between the two treatment groups were comparable.
• Lymphovascular and perineural invasions provided significant prognostic information for postoperative risk assessment.