The two strategies were discussed in an Aug. 20 Medscape article.
A portion of patients who have a complete clinical response after treatment are able to avoid total mesorectal excision surgery and the need for an ostomy bag.
Some physicians are beginning to apply a similar strategy for patients with a near-complete clinical response after treatment, deciding to wait and watch for tumor regrowth instead of pursuing surgery.
A near-complete clinical response means there is no sign of a tumor eight weeks after treatment, but that the area has not completely healed, as it has in patients with a complete clinical response.
Critics of the watch-and-wait approach said that while the strategy gives more time for the treatment area to heal, it also gives more time for tumors and micrometastases to grow, according to the article.
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