Authors
Terri Sandi Susyanto¹, Kiki Lukman¹ , Andriana Purnama², Marhendra Satria Utama³, Etis Primastari⁴

Affiliations
¹Department of Surgery, Division of Digestive Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, Jl. Prof Eyckman No 38, Bandung, Indonesia ²Department of Surgery, Division of Digestive Surgery, Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Jl. Pasteur No. 38, Bandung, Indonesia ³Department of Radiation Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, Jl. Prof Eyckman No 38, Bandung, Indonesia 4 Department of Anatomical Pathology, Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Jl. Pasteur No. 38, Bandung, Indonesia

Background

• Locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) is commonly treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT), but treatment response varies widely.

• COX-2 and HER-2 are biomarkers linked to radioresistance, and combining them may help predict treatment response.

Methods

• A retrospective cohort study of 59 patients with stage II-III rectal adenocarcinoma treated with standardized nCRT.

• COX-2 and HER-2 expression in pretreatment biopsies were assessed via immunohistochemistry, and radiologic response was evaluated 4-8 weeks after treatment using RECIST 1.1 criteria.

Key Results

• High COX-2 expression was found in the majority of cases.

• Low COX-2 expression and HER-2 negativity were mostly associated with good radiotherapy response.

Discussion & Conclusion

• COX-2 and HER-2 may serve as independent molecular predictors of radiotherapy response in LARC.

• Combined biomarker profiling could support risk stratification to guide treatment intensification or de-escalation strategies.

Related SDGs

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being – contributes to more precise, personalized cancer treatment strategies.

Journal Information

Journal: Indonesian Biomedical Journal

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18585/inabj.v18i1.3959