Chemotherapy for Patients with Colorectal Cancer - When and How?
- Author:
Jae Hyun KIM
1
Author Information
1. Department of Internal Medicine, Kosin University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea. kjh8517@daum.net
- Publication Type:Review
- Keywords:
Colorectal neoplasm;
Chemotherapy
- MeSH:
Chemotherapy, Adjuvant;
Colorectal Neoplasms;
Drug Therapy;
Humans;
Immunotherapy;
Life Expectancy;
Palliative Care;
Prognosis;
Recurrence
- From:
Journal of Digestive Cancer Report
2019;7(1):1-4
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
It is important to choose the appropriate treatment option for patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), because it could affect the prognosis of patients. Chemotherapy is effective in prolonging survival and time to progression in patients with advanced CRC. Adjuvant chemotherapy have been reported to reduce the recurrence rate of colorectal cancer by 30% in patients with stage 3 or high risk of stage 2 CRC. Although palliative chemotherapy does not offer long-term benefits, as life expectancy remains below 12 months in most of those receiving treatment, recent developments in the treatment including target agents and immunotherapy have improved the median overall survival time in patients with metastatic CRC by up to 30 months. Chemotherapy for patients with CRC is classified into neoadjuvant, adjuvant, and palliative therapy according to the status of patients. In this review, I summarized the chemotherapy for patients with CRC, which applying in clinical practice.