Results of rectal cancer treatment

Background: In Slovenia the incidence of colorectal cancer is growing rapidly. In 2000 591 new cases of colon cancer and 503 new cases of rectal cancer were registered. Our study compares results of two groups of patients with rectal cancer. Methods: In the period from January 1, 1991, to December 31, 2000, 528 patients with rectal carcinoma underwent resection. We divided them in two groups, one operated in the first 5-year and the other in later 5-year period. 5-year survival was estimated by means of Kaplan-Meier statistical analysis. Patients who died within 30 days after the operation were censored. Differences in survival curves between both groups were assessed by the log rank test. Results: We resected 528/591 (90.6 %) patients. R0 resection was performed in 431 (81.6 %) patients, R1 in 13 (2.5 %), and R2 in 84 (15.9 %) patients. Postoperative mortality rate in resected patients was 3.6 % (19/528), in the group with paliative operations was 12.7 % (7/55). Overall five-year survival rate was 52.4 % for rectal cancer. Five-year survival rate for the patients with radical resection (R0) was 59.5 %. Conclusions: 5-year survival for R0-resected patients with rectal cancer was in the period from 1996 to 2000 statistically significantly better compared with the period from 1991 to 1995 (63 % vs. 55 %) (p = 0.03627) in stage III (p = 0.01663).