Impact of body composition and physical strength changes during chemoradiotherapy on complications and survival after oesophagectomy.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess body composition and physical strength changes during neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and assess their predictive value for (severe) postoperative complications and overall survival in patients who underwent oesophagectomy for oesophageal cancer.

Methods: Consecutive patients who underwent nCRT and oesophagectomy with curative intent in a tertiary referral center were included in the study. Perioperative data were collected in a prospectively maintained database. The CT images before and after nCRT were used to assess skeletal muscle index (SMI), subcutaneous fat index (SFI), and visceral fat index (VFI). To assess physical strength, handgrip strength (HGS) and the exercise capacity of the steep ramp test (SRT Wpeak) were acquired before and after nCRT.

Results: Between 2015 and 2020, 126 patients were included. SMI increased in female subgroups and decreased in male subgroups (35.38 to35.60 cm/m for females, P value 0.048, 46.89 to 45.34 cm/m for males, P value < 0.001). No significant changes in SFI, VFI, HGS, and SRT Wpeak were observed. No predictive value of changes in SMI, HGS, and SRT Wpeak was shown for (severe) postoperative complications and overall survival.

Conclusions: A significant but minimal decrease in SMI during nCRT was observed for males only, it was not associated with postoperative complications or overall survival. Physical strength measurements did not decrease significantly over the course of nCRT. No associations with postoperative complications or overall survival were observed.