Colon Cancer

Garrett M. Nash, MD, MPH, FACS, FASCRS

The current issue of Clinics in Colon and Rectal Surgery is focused on topics within the management of colon and appendiceal cancer which are novel or controversial. This issue begins with a paper by Kalady and Heald which focuses on identifying patients at risk for hereditary colon cancer syndromes. This paper delves into the thought process that drives initial clinical evaluation and guides the clinician to appropriate genetic testing. The next two papers by Hall and Isik and Gorgun, respectively, explore the classification of malignant adenomas and the variety of procedures that are now used to remove such polyps, including endoscopic and laparoscopic, and the development of robotic colon cancer surgery. The following two papers by Lee-Kong and Lisle, and Nadler et al focus on radical surgery, and intraperitoneal chemotherapy for complicated, or regionally metastatic colon cancers. Then, the paper by Kelly describes the treatment of appendix cancers of different histologies and stages. The issue ends with papers from Varghese and Makhoul et al, respectively, on the selective use of adjuvant chemotherapy for stage II colon cancer and surveillance and survivorship after curative colon cancer treatment. The editors expect that the readers will find these papers excellent reviews of each of these areas which are critical to a practicing colon and rectal surgeon.