Vol 1, No 1 (2005)
Review paper
Published online: 2005-05-17
Progress in systemic therapy of advanced colorectal cancer
Onkol. Prak. Klin 2005;1(1):27-39.
Abstract
Until the early 1990s the therapeutic options of systemic therapy for advanced colorectal cancer were
limited to fluorouracil and produced rather disappointing results. The progress in the management of this
disease has been very rapid during the last decade. The median duration of survival among patients with
advanced colorectal cancer has almost doubled from 10–12 months to 18–20 months. This improvement has been achieved due to the introduction of several new cytotoxic agents as well as the entirely new category of treatment addressing molecular targets. Although some of these new therapeutic modalities
are still experimental, they may herald a shift in the management of colorectal cancer in very near future. The incorporation of novel therapeutic options into standard care should be based on mature data from well-projected clinical trials. Physicians should be aware of new toxicity profiles of modern therapies as
well as their financial consequences.
Keywords: colorectal canceradvanced stagesystemic therapychemotherapytargeted therapy