ADJUVANT CHEMOTHERAPY AFTER RECTAL CANCER CHEMORADIOTHERAPY

Combination of surgical treatment and neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy is the main treatment tactics for cT3 or cN+ rectal cancer patients. Integration of chemoradiotherapy in clinical practice reduced recurrence rate but had impact on overall survival only in patients with R0 resection. Disease progression in most rectal cancer patients occurs mainly by distant metastases development, which dictates the necessity of systemic treatment improvement. Yet till today there was no clinical evidence to support adjuvant chemotherapy after preoperative chemoradiation in rectal cancer patients. This review article focuses on prospective and retrospective data on adjuvant chemotherapy efficacy in rectal cancer patients, who received previous chemoradiation.