Steven R. Alberts, MD, MPH

This management guide covers the risk factors, symptoms, diagnosis, staging, and treatment of colorectal and anal cancers.

Despite the existence of excellent screening and preventive strategies, colorectal carcinoma (CRC) remains a major public health problem in Western countries. The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimated that in 2009, 146,970 people will be diagnosed with CRC, and 49,920 will die of the disease. CRC is the third most common type of cancer in both sexes (after prostate and lung cancers in men and lung and breast cancers in women) and the second most common cause of cancer death in the United States.

About the ActivityThis activity is based on a brief article developed as part of the E-Update Series and posted on the Web. It was developed from an identified educational need for information about practical management issues in the practice of medical, surgical, and radiation oncology. This activity has been developed and approved under the direction of CME LLC.

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The article by Drs. Peeters and Haller provides the details of 20 years of investigation into the adjuvant therapy of colorectal cancer. The authors describe pivotal trials through which an international cast of investigators have identified adjuvant