Onkológia 1/2022

Maintenance treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer, yes or no?

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the most common cancer and the second most common cause of cancer death in the male population in the Slovak Republic, the second most common and also the second most common cause of cancer death in the female population. Treatment of metastatic CRC is predominantly palliative, usually a combination of a chemotherapeutic „doublet“ or „triplet“ with targeted biologic therapy. Once a response to treatment (some degree of regression or stable disease) has been reached, several options for continuing treatment should be considered. One option is to continue the induction therapy until progression or intolerable toxicity, the other to change the treatment to maintenance (omitting the most toxic drug), the third to observation, „treatment holidays“. The motivation is to achieve the longest overal survival with the best quality of life. The presented analysis offers and compares these options, their advantages and disadvantages.

Keywords: metastatic colorectal cancer, treatment options, maintenance treatment, treatment holidays