In patients receiving neoadjuvant chemoradiation a decrease of postoperative survivin mRNA expression was detected in 83.3% of patients with adenocarcinomas compared to 50% with squamous cell carcinoma (Mann-Whitney test: P < .04 ), suggesting that survivin levels were particularly decreased in adenocarcinomas following neoadjuvant chemoradiation and surgical resection. This evidence concerns the gene BIRC5 and squamous cell carcinoma.