Radiotherapy Before Surgery Lessens Rectal Cancer

The standard treatment of operating first increases the risk of a recurring rectal tumour which is more difficult to treat.

Radiation therapy before surgery is a more effective way to treat rectal cancer for people with an operable form of the disease, British researchers said on Friday.

The standard treatment of operating first increases the risk of a recurring rectal tumour which is more difficult to treat, according to their study published in the journal Lancet.

Robert Steele of Ninewells Hospital in Scotland and colleagues showed that after three years the rates of a recurring tumour in patients treated with radiotherapy before surgery was 4.4 percent compared to about 11 percent for those who had surgery first.