Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is increasingly being recognized as a heterogeneous disease, with molecular features defining emerging subtypes. Understanding which tests to order in which cases can better direct care for our patients. Increasingly, panel testing has advantages over individual genetic testing.

Nearly two-thirds of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer report experiencing financial burden during their treatment, according to a study from the University of Michigan.

The FDA has granted a fast track designation to TAS-102 (tipiracil hydrochloride) as a treatment for patients with refractory metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), according to an announcement by Taiho Oncology, the company developing the drug in the United States.

All patients with metastatic colorectal cancer should undergo RAS mutation testing to ensure optimal patient selection for EGFR inhibitor therapy.

Alan P. Venook, MD, professor, Department of Medicine (Hematology/Oncology), University of California, San Francisco, discusses the future of colorectal cancer treatment.

The combination of ramucirumab and FOLFIRI significantly improved OS and PFS compared with chemotherapy alone as a second-line treatment for patients with mCRC.

This review highlights that preclinical data and discusses several ongoing clinical trials that are leveraging this information to explore new therapeutic strategies in targeting BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer.

Marc Peeters, MD, PhD, department of oncology, Antwerp University Hospital, Antwerpen, Belgium, discusses the efficacy and safety of panitumumab versus cetuximab as seen in the ASPECCT trial in colorectal cancer (CRC).

Alan P. Venook, MD, professor, Department of Medicine (Hematology/Oncology), University of California, San Francisco, discusses implications from the CALGB/SWOG 80405 trial of targeted therapies administered in colorectal cancer.

The FDA has approved the noninvasive stool-based DNA test Cologuard for the detection of colorectal cancer or cancer precursors in asymptomatic patients at average risk.

There is a tension in the air these days when it comes to the manner in which evidence-based oncology research should be conducted in this revolutionary era, and that tension is evident on the pages of peer-reviewed articles describing novel findings in clinical molecular oncology, in editorials discussing these studies, and in commentaries related to future approaches to discovery.

Tanios Bekaii-Saab, MD, discusses an analysis of two targeted drugs for the treatment of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC).