PRODIGE 90 - (FFCD 2204) Neoadjuvant Dostarlimab with Short Course Radiotherapy in a Watch-and-wait Strategy for Microsatellite Unstable or Mismatch Repair-deficient Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer Patients

Total neoadjuvant treatment (TNT) including radiotherapy and induction or consolidation systemic chemotherapy has become the standard treatment for patients with stage II and III rectal adenocarcinoma. Along with the improvement of DFS, this preoperative treatment has paved the way to a paradigm-shifting nonoperative management. Indeed, rectal preservation has become a new goal for patients without detectable residual cancer after TNT with the option to reserve surgery for those with cancer regrowth (25-40%). Five to 10% of non-metastatic rectal cancer patients are molecularly characterized as microsatellite unstable (MSI) or mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR), and present a decreased response to systemic chemotherapy. As this tumor phenotype is associated with high immunogenicity, immunotherapy with anti-PD1 molecules has recently emerged as the new standard first line treatment in the metastatic setting, with long duration of cancer control for at least 40% of patients. In patients with localized rectal tumors, it has been suggested that immunotherapy alone may induce complete clinical response and may allow these patients to be considered for nonoperative therapeutic approaches. Finally, given the efficacy of immunotherapy in MSI rectal patients, we did not want to differ for 5 weeks this treatment with the risk of disease progression by given long-course RT. In the present trial, radiotherapy is evaluated as a " potentiating " treatment for immunotherapy rather than as a " local treatment " in a TNT strategy.