Adjuvant Immunochemotherapy with Protein-Bound Polysaccharide K for Colon Cancer in Relation to Oncogenic β-Catenin Activation

Authors: Kaname Yamashita, Andrei V. Ougolkov, Hiroaki Nakazato, et al.

Journal: Diseases of the Colon & Rectum

Study Design: Retrospective analysis of a randomized controlled trial

Participants: 202 patients with colon cancer who underwent curative resection

Intervention:

• Immunochemotherapy group: 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) plus PSK (protein-bound polysaccharide K)
• Chemotherapy group: 5-FU alone

Primary Outcomes: Recurrence-free survival (RFS), cancer death survival (CDS), and overall survival (OS)

Summary: The study investigated the effect of adjuvant immunochemotherapy with PSK on colon cancer patients with different β-catenin activation patterns. The researchers found that patients with diffuse nuclear accumulation of β-catenin (NAd) showed significantly improved RFS, CDS, and OS when treated with immunochemotherapy compared to chemotherapy alone. No survival benefit was observed in patients with β-catenin activation at the tumor invasion front (NAinv) or without β-catenin activation. The study suggests that the presence of NAd-type β-catenin activation can identify colon cancer patients who may benefit from adjuvant immunotherapy with PSK.