Surgery Not Always Needed for Metastatic Colon Cancer

During a June 1st, 2009 poster session at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Dr. Philip Paty and his colleagues shared research findings suggesting that for people with metastatic colon cancer, which is cancer that has spread beyond the colon to other parts of the body, surgery to remove the primary (first) colon tumor may not be necessary. This type of research is vitally important, because it suggests that many people diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer may undergo unnecessary and potentially risky surgeries that decrease their quality of life, yet offer no benefits in terms of managing their cancer.

The researchers noted that many oncology experts have long believed that removing the primary tumor would help prevent later complications for people with metastatic colon cancer. While this sounds logical, it may not be true. There are cases in which a primary colon tumor is completely blocking the digestive tract or pressing on other organs of the body, causing complications. In these cases, surgery often is needed. But for patients who are not having problems caused directly by the tumor, surgery may be unnecessary and people would be better off without it.

Metastatic colon cancer is not considered curable, but with appropriate medical care, people with this disease can have good quality of life and spend important time with family and friends. Unnecessary surgery can take away from quality of life and may even cause more problems than it solves. The most important thing to take away from this research is that even with a diagnosis of metastatic colon cancer, you have options regarding what course of treatment you want to take. And working closely with your medical team to determine what's right for you, including whether or not you need surgery, is an important step you can take to better care for yourself.