Role of chemotherapy in colorectal cancers

Abstract

Abstract Colorectal cancer (CRC) accounts for almost 10% of cancer diagnoses and is the second most common cause of cancer death. Since the advent of chemotherapy like 5-fluorouracil, new, efficacious therapeutic modalities have emerged, leading to treatment choices becoming increasingly individualized and specific. Despite these advances, chemotherapy plays a significant role in adjuvant, neoadjuvant, and systemic treatment. The use of chemotherapy is limited in early-stage CRC, where curative resection is more likely. However, adjuvant therapy is considered if tumours display clinicopathologic features that increase the chance of recurrence. Chemotherapy, often alongside targeted therapies, is more integral when treating metastatic CRC, with decision-making influenced by genetic mutations, a patient’s treatment history, and the possibility of surgical resection of metastases.