Onkológia 5/2010

The combination of cetuximab and radiotherapy in the first line treatment of colorectal carcinoma – The Slovak project

Colorectal cancer is globally the cause of 529 00 deaths every year. 25 % of patient with CRC are diagnosed in the metastatic stadium with the 5-year survival rate 10 %. In recent years the 5-year survival rate in patient with metastatic disease has been prolonged from 6 months to 2 years. This success has been achieved due to following factors: the introduction of new chemotherapeutics and biological treatments, the better selection of patient for different therapy modalities and the introduction of multidisciplinary approach to treatment. The current treatment of colorectal cancer is based on fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy in combination with oxaliplatin or ironotecan, with incorporation of targeted therapy with cetuximab, bevacizumab or panitumumab respectively. The choice of treatment strategy depends on several factors: thinking over clinical status of the patient (aggressive therapy or not), assessment of treatment effectiveness predictors, potential resection of hepatic metastasis etc.

Keywords: colorectal cancer, chemotherapy, biological therapy, cetuximab.