No Difference in Chemotherapy Benefits for Young Patients with Stage II and III Colon Cancer Compared to Those Fifty and Older

Young patients with stage II or III colon cancer get equal benefit from chemotherapy as older patients, and they have similar side effects.

Five years after treatment, 67 percent of patients under the age of fifty hadn’t had their cancer spread beyond the colon (recurrence-free interval), the same percentage that applied to patients who were fifty or over.

Overall survival and disease-free survival were somewhat better for young patients because they had fewer other reasons for dying.  Overall and disease-free survival reflect patients who are alive five years after beginning treatment.  Neither includes people who have died from any cause, including their cancer. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on June 10th, 2010
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »
Tags: stage II colon cancer, stage III colon cancer, survival, young patients

Colorectal Cancer Research Briefs: Patients want colonoscopy videos

Briefly

• Hormone replacement therapy reduces risk of colon cancer.
• Smoking before age 30 increases chances that colon cancer will recur.
• Low CEA levels improve both survival and disease-free survival for stage II colon cancer.
• Most patients want videos of their colonoscopies and are willing to pay for them. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on February 10th, 2010
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 1 Comment »
Tags: CEA, colonoscopy, hormone replacement therapy, recurrence, survival

Patient Outcomes Vary Depending on Liver Resectability

Patients with stage IV colorectal cancer live longer when tumors in their liver can be removed surgically, but not all patients have cancer that can be operated on.

Separating patients with liver tumors from colorectal cancer into three groups according to possible liver resectability, British doctors found a wide variation in both overall survival and progression-free survival three years later. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on January 29th, 2010
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Tags: liver metastases, liver resection, survival

Which Side of the Colon Matters

More evidence is emerging that right-sided colon cancers are different in significant ways from those on the left side.

Information from 17,641 colon cancer patients in the German Colon/Rectum Cancer Study Group found that people with cancers on the right side of the colon were older, had more chronic illness, and were more likely to be women.  There were significantly more deaths in this group. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on January 17th, 2010
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Tags: right-sided tumors, survival

Value of KRAS and BRAF Mutations in Forecasting Survival

For stage II and III colon cancer, a tumor mutation in the KRAS gene does not impact either relapse-free survival or overall survival.

BRAF mutations, which are less common, don’t help with prognosis for relapse-free survival, but do provide information about overall survival in some tumors.   Patients with BRAF mutations and microsatellite-low or stable tumors had poorer overall survival than those without mutations. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on January 5th, 2010
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 1 Comment »
Tags: BRAF, KRAS, survival