Publication Name	World Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology
Manuscript ID	116559
Country	China

Category	Oncology
Manuscript Type	Letter to the Editor
Article Title	Total neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced rectal cancer: Navigating beyond surgical outcomes to holistic patient-centered care
Manuscript Source	Unsolicited Manuscript
All Author List	Shi-Qiong Zhou and Qing-Hua Ke
Funding Agency and Grant Number
Corresponding Author	Qing-Hua Ke, Chief Physician, PhD, Department of Chemoradiotherapy, Jingzhou No. 1 People’s Hospital and First Affiliated Hospital of Yangtze University, No. 10 Tianhu Road, Shashi District, Jingzhou 434000, Hubei Province, China. 3803354759@qq.com
Key Words	Locally advanced rectal cancer; Total neoadjuvant therapy; Surgical outcomes; Functional preservation; Patient-centered care; Minimally invasive surgery; Biomarker stratification; Long-term survival
Core Tip	Locally advanced rectal cancer treatment is evolving from surgery-centric to multimodal strategies, with total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) gaining attention for balancing curability and function. Jabbar et al’s study confirms that TNT-RAPIDO is surgically safe, achieving comparable R0 resection rates to standard chemoradiotherapy while reducing stoma duration and permanent stoma risk. We highlight the study’s contributions to resolving TNT-related uncertainties and propose future directions: (1) Validating findings in multicenter cohorts; (2) Evaluating long-term oncologic outcomes; (3) Integrating patient-reported measures; and (4) Developing personalized regimens. This shift toward holistic care ensures locally advanced rectal cancer treatment prioritizes both survival and quality of life.
Citation	Zhou SQ, Ke QH. Total neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced rectal cancer: Navigating beyond surgical outcomes to holistic patient-centered care. World J Gastrointest Oncol 2026; In press

Received	2025-11-14 10:15
Peer-Review Started	2025-11-14 10:15
First Decision by Editorial Office Director	2026-01-09 07:49
Return for Revision	2026-01-09 07:49
Revised	2026-01-15 13:03
Publication Fee Transferred
Second Decision by Editor	2026-02-14 02:35
Second Decision by Editor-in-Chief
Final Decision by Editorial Office Director	2026-02-14 08:11
Articles in Press	2026-02-14 08:11
Edit the Manuscript by Language Editor
Typeset the Manuscript

ISSN	1948-5204 (online)
Open Access	This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Copyright	© The Author(s) 2026. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
Permissions	For details, please visit: http://www.wjgnet.com/bpg/gerinfo/207
Publisher	Baishideng Publishing Group Inc, 7041 Koll Center Parkway, Suite 160, Pleasanton, CA 94566, USA
Website	http://www.wjgnet.com