Colorectal Cancer Treatment

Colorectal cancer originates in the colon or rectum, typically as adenocarcinomas. It is staged from 0 through 4 to guide treatment-ranging from localized removal to advanced systemic therapies. Early stages (0–2) are often curable with surgery alone, while stage 3 may require adjuvant chemotherapy, and metastatic (stage 4) disease often combines systemic chemo, targeted therapies, immunotherapy and radiation for symptom control or downsizing. Multimodal treatment relies on colectomy techniques-including total mesorectal excision (TME) for rectal tumors-often aided by laparoscopic or robotic access to reduce recovery time and improve functional outcomes . Radiation therapy, especially in rectal cancer, is commonly used pre‑ or post‑operatively to shrink tumors and reduce recurrence risk. Chemotherapy regimens such as FOLFOX (5‑FU, leucovorin, oxaliplatin) are standard for adjuvant or neoadjuvant treatment over 3–6 months. Targeted agents and checkpoint inhibitors (e.g., pembrolizumab for dMMR/MSI‑H disease) are increasingly used in advanced settings.