A study published in the British Journal of Cancer found that failing to complete adjuvant chemotherapy was associated with adverse survival in people with stage 3 colon cancer. ("Adjuvant" means the chemotherapy is administered after the tumor is removed.)
Results of the Study
You'd probably expect that people who didn't finish might not do as well as people who did finish chemotherapy, and that was the case. However, this study also found that people who only had surgery - no chemo at all - fared better than those who started chemo after surgery and didn't finish. I wouldn't suggest using this study to make a treatment decision, but I think it's worth discussing with your doctor. Also, the study looked at an older chemotherapy medication, so the results may not apply to today's chemotherapy medications, which are more potent and require less time to administer.
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Source: Morris, M. and Platell, C. "Failure to Complete Adjuvant Chemotherapy is Associated with Adverse Survival in Stage III Colon Cancer Patients." British Journal of Cancer 96 (2007): 701-707. Accessed 10 Mar. 2007.
