Chemotherapy in Rectal Cancer

Ahn, Joong Bae

Abstract

Until mid-1990s, fluorouracil was the only chemotherapeutic agent available for the treatment of colorectal cancer. The treatment of advanced colorectal cancer has evolved considerably over the last decade. Considerable improvements in survival as well as quality of life have been achieved with the application of oxaliplatin and irinotecan with fluoropyrimidine as a first and subsequent line therapy for colorectal cancer. Development of oral fluoropyrimidines as an alternative to intravenous administration provides an additional option for combination cytotoxic therapy, which is currently being assessed in phase III trials in advanced settings. The appearance of biologic agents in mid-2000s, namely cetuximab and bevacizumab, and their integration with conventional cytotoxic therapy for the treatment of colorectal cancer has additionally expanded the options for the treatment. Their dramatic success has led to further clinical studies of targeted therapy in colorectal cancer, making it one of the most promising areas of cancer research. Although considerable improvement was achieved by incorporating oxaliplatin in adjuvant chemotherapy for the treatment of colon cancer, there has been no phase III trial incorporating new agents in adjuvant setting for rectal cancer. However, many phase II trials on the efficacy of new agents in the setting of concurrent chemoradiation are in progress. Based on their results, randomized phase III clinical trials evaluating new agents in preoperative or postoperative setting will be carried out.