Regional chemotherapy is indicated after surgical resection of colorectal metastases to the liver: A debate

Abstract

Surgical resection for selected patients with hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer can cure approximately one-fourth of these patients. The addition of regional chemotherapy as an attempt to improve this statistic has been extensively investigated in clinical trials. As part of a multidisciplinary educational program, a series of debates on various topics in oncology are held at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, New York, involving the medical, surgical, and radiation oncology departments. One such debate focused on the use of regional chemotherapy after potentially curative resection of hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer. The representative medical and surgical oncology fellows (N.I.K. and B.P.M.), with guidance from their respective mentors (C.G.L., J.F.G., and N.J.P.), presented concise reviews from the literature arguing for and against the use of regional chemotherapy in this setting. They appear as Parts 1 and 2 in this article. This exercise is purely educational and does not in any way reflect the opinion or the clinical practice of the authors. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.