Colon and Rectal Cancers - Prognosis

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Highlights	Treatment	Radiation Treatment
Introduction	Surgery	Follow-up Testing
Causes	Chemotherapy	Treatment for Metastasized Colorectal Cancer
Risk Factors and Prevention	Radiation	Resources
Symptoms	Resources	References
Diagnosis and Screening	References

Radiation for Rectal Cancer. Adjuvant radiation is a common practice for patients with rectal cancer in Stages II and III. Radiation is used to help prevent cancer recurrence. In recent years, doctors have also begun administering chemotherapy and radiation before surgery for rectal cancer (neoadjuvant chemoradiation). The use of radiation before surgery can help shrink the size of the tumor. Pre-operative chemotherapy and radiation may also help preserve sphincter-muscle function and reduce the chance that a patient will need a colostomy.

Side Effects of Radiation Therapy

Side effects of radiation may include:

Diarrhea
Skin irritation around the anus
Incontinence
Bladder irritation
Fatigue
Sexual dysfunction in men and vaginal irritation in women

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Review Date: 10/21/2010
Reviewed By: Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).