New agents, combinations, and opportunities in the treatment of advanced and early-stage colon cancer

Abstract

There has been a dramatic improvement in outcomes for patients who have colon cancer over recent years. These improvements have come about largely because of the availability of new chemotherapy agents (irinotecan, oxaliplatin and capecitabine) and new biologic agents (bevacizumab and cetuximab). Large, well-designed clinical trials have resulted in the routine use of all of these agents in the treatment of patients who have metastatic disease, and this has led to improved survival for these patients. In earlier stage disease, oxaliplatin/5-FU-based chemotherapy has become a new standard of adjuvant therapy for many patients. Clinical research efforts are investigating the use of biologic agents along with chemotherapy for adjuvant treatment; it is hoped that this will translate into a greater cure rate for these patients.