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World J Gastroenterol. Aug 7, 2026; 32(29): 119809
Published online Aug 7, 2026. doi: 10.3748/wjg.119809
Perioperative SOX plus sintilimab vs P-SOX and CAPOX in advanced gastric cancer: A real-world comparison
Di-Xia Zhou, Shao-Wei Jiang, Chen-Guang Zhang, Bao-Jia Cai, Hai-Dong Lv
Di-Xia Zhou, Hai-Dong Lv, Department of Gastrointestinal Cancer Surgery, Qinghai Provincial People’s Hospital, Xining 810000, Qinghai Province, China
Shao-Wei Jiang, Department of Radiation Oncology, Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital, Xining 810000, Qinghai Province, China
Chen-Guang Zhang, School of Clinical Medicine, Qinghai University, Xining 810000, Qinghai Province, China
Bao-Jia Cai, Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital, Xining 810000, Qinghai Province, China
Co-first authors: Di-Xia Zhou and Shao-Wei Jiang.
Author contributions: Zhou DX and Jiang SW were responsible for study conception and design, data analysis, and manuscript drafting, contributed equally as co-first authors; Zhang CG and Cai BJ contributed to data collection and interpretation; Lv HD supervised the study and revised the manuscript critically for important intellectual content. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.
AI contribution statement: DeepSeek(V3) was used during manuscript preparation. DeepSeek was used only for language polishing and translation assistance. It was not used for data analysis, statistical analysis, or scientific writing assistance.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital, No. SL-2022-035.
Informed consent statement: Written informed consent was obtained from all participants.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request, subject to institutional and ethical regulations.
Corresponding author: Hai-Dong Lv, Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal Cancer Surgery, Qinghai Provincial People’s Hospital, No. 2 Gonghe Road, Chengdong District, Xining 810000, Qinghai Province, China. lvhaid@126.com
Received: February 6, 2026
Revised: February 25, 2026
Accepted: March 27, 2026
Published online: August 7, 2026
Processing time: 161 Days and 14.7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Advanced gastric cancer (GC) remains a major cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Perioperative chemotherapy has been established as a standard treatment strategy to improve resectability and survival outcomes. Recently, the incorporation of immune checkpoint inhibitors into chemotherapy regimens has demonstrated promising survival benefits in advanced and metastatic settings. However, real-world evidence comparing immunochemotherapy with intensified chemotherapy regimens in the perioperative context remains limited, and the prognostic factors influencing progression-free survival (PFS) in this population are not fully understood.

AIM

To compare the efficacy and safety of oxaliplatin plus S-1 combined with sintilimab (SOX + XDL), nab-paclitaxel plus oxaliplatin and S-1 (P-SOX), and capecitabine plus oxaliplatin (CAPOX) as perioperative treatment regimens for patients with advanced GC.

METHODS

A total of 323 patients with advanced GC who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by standard D2 radical gastrectomy were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 101 patients were treated with SOX + XDL, 148 with P-SOX, and 74 with CAPOX. By using the sample function in R software, all patients were randomly assigned to a training set and a validation set, which were used for model development and validation, respectively. Short-term efficacy, long-term outcomes, and treatment-related adverse events were compared among the three groups. In addition, clinical factors associated with PFS were further investigated.

RESULTS

Based on the tumor regression grade, compared with the P-SOX and CAPOX groups, the SOX + XDL group achieved a significantly greater pathological response (85.15% vs 72.30% vs 59.46%, P < 0.001). According to the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors version 1.1 criteria, the objective response rate was numerically higher in the SOX + XDL group (68.32%) than in the P-SOX (60.14%) and CAPOX (55.41%) groups, but the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.196). Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed significant differences in overall survival (OS) and PFS among the three regimens. Patients treated with SOX + XDL had better OS (log-rank P = 0.004) and longer PFS (log-rank P = 0.026) than did those treated with P-SOX or CAPOX. All regimens were generally well tolerated, with predominantly mild to moderate adverse events. No significant differences in hematologic toxicity or liver function abnormalities were detected among the groups (all P > 0.05). However, alopecia occurred more frequently in the P-SOX and CAPOX groups than in the SOX + XDL group (P = 0.002).

CONCLUSION

Compared with the other regimens, the SOX + XDL regimen showed superior short-term efficacy and improved survival outcomes, with better OS and PFS. Favorable treatment response, smaller tumor size (≤ 2 cm), earlier clinical tumor-node-metastasis stage, and well-differentiated tumors were associated with better prognosis in patients with advanced GC.

Keywords: Gastric cancer; Adverse reaction; Sintilimab; Oxaliplatin plus S-1 regimen; Programmed cell death protein 1

Core Tip: This real-world study systematically compared perioperative oxaliplatin plus S-1 combined with sintilimab, nab-paclitaxel plus oxaliplatin and S-1, and capecitabine plus oxaliplatin regimens in patients with advanced gastric cancer, focusing on treatment efficacy, survival outcomes, and safety. Beyond conventional survival analyses, a prognostic model was developed and validated to stratify progression-free survival risk using readily available clinicopathological and treatment response variables. The findings demonstrate that oxaliplatin plus S-1 combined with sintilimab is associated with favorable survival outcomes with manageable toxicity, and the proposed nomogram provides a practical tool for individualized risk assessment and treatment decision-making in perioperative advanced gastric cancer.

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