title: Complete remission after radiotherapy for recurrent rectal cancer.
abstract: Although the efficacy of radiotherapy for the palliation of recurrent or inoperable cancer has been proven, it results in complete tumor remission only rarely. We report a case of pelvic recurrence in which complete histological remission followed radiotherapy. A 68-year-old man developed a small pelvic recurrence near the rectal stump 8 months after a Hartmann procedure for rectal cancer. Histologic examination of the biopsy specimens revealed adenocarcinoma consistent with the primary tumor. He received radiotherapy to the whole pelvis, with a total dose of 39.4 Gy administered in 22 fractions over 4 weeks, with a continuous infusion of 5-fluorouracil as a radiosensitizer. After regression of the tumor was confirmed, resection of the pelvic recurrence was performed. Histologic examination of the resected specimen revealed no tumor. Thirty-six months after the second operation, the patient was alive with no evidence of disease. The experience of our case and a review of the literature suggests that small pelvic recurrences may be more responsive to radiotherapy than larger ones.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Niigata University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hayashi
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shirai
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hatakeyama
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D000368:Aged; D001706:Biopsy; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D005472:Fluorouracil / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D011838:Radiation-Sensitizing Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant; D012004:Rectal Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D012074:Remission Induction
chemical_list: D011838:Radiation-Sensitizing Agents; D005472:Fluorouracil