Irinotecan plus S-1 versus S-1 in patients with previously treated recurrent or metastatic esophageal cancer (ESWN 01): a prospective randomized, multicenter, open-labeled phase 3 trial

Background The benefit of systemic treatments in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) which has progressed after chemotherapy is still uncertain and optimal regimens based on randomized trials have not yet been established. We aimed to compare the efficacy of irinotecan plus S-1 with S-1 monotherapy in recurrent or metastatic ESCC patients who had resistance to platinum- or taxane-based chemotherapy.