Colorectal Cancer

This collection features academic colorectal surgeons and oncologists discussing colon and rectal cancer: how the disease spreads, chemotherapy selection, non-surgical treatment options, and the role of multidisciplinary tumor boards.

Patients and families most often want to know: Has the cancer spread beyond the original site, and how is that actually determined? Is the chemotherapy being proposed well matched to this specific tumor, or simply the center's usual regimen? Can rectal cancer be treated without surgery in this particular case, and who makes that decision? Has this case actually been reviewed by a full multidisciplinary tumor board, with surgeons, oncologists, and radiologists together, or only by one specialist alone?

Colorectal cancer treatment increasingly depends on tumor genetics and precise staging, and recommendations can differ between a single surgeon's view and a full multidisciplinary discussion. An independent panel of academic experts, chosen for their published work on this exact disease, can provide that broader, tumor-board-style review even when one is not otherwise available, and explain the reasoning behind each option.

To have a colorectal cancer case reviewed this way, see the medical second opinion page.