Colon cancer is the abnormal growth of cells that line the large intestine, also known as the colon. There are approximately 106,100 new cases of colon cancer in the United States each year, according to the American Cancer Society. New screening processes and advances in treatments contribute to the declining death rate of colon cancer since the 1990s. Chemotherapy is one treatment option, but other treatments including surgery, radiation and targeted therapies are also effective in treating colon cancer.
Surgery
For cancers found in the early stages, surgery is often the initial treatment. Very small stage I tumors can be removed by inserting a tube through the rectum and into the colon. The tumor is then cut out. This is known as a local excision. If the cancer is found inside a polyp, which is a bulging portion of tissue, it is known as a polypectomy.
A surgical procedure called a colectomy removes the tumor and a portion of healthy colon on either side of the tumor. The resulting two parts of the colon are then sutured together. This type of surgery can either be done through an abdominal incision or by laproscopic surgery, which uses several small incisions for instruments to be inserted to perform the resection.
When too much of the colon must be removed during a colectomy so the two ends cannot be reconnected, a colostomy is necessary. To perform a colostomy, an opening, or stoma, must be made through the abdominal wall. This is where waste will pass out of the body and into a bag.
Radiation
Radiation therapy is the use of high-energy beams, such as x-rays, to kill cancer cells. Radiation is often used in conjunction with surgery to ensure that any portion of the tumor left after surgery is killed. Radiation therapy can be delivered either through external beam radiation or internally through the insertion of small radioactive pellets or seeds. External beam radiation is most often used in the treatment of colon cancers, according to the American Cancer Society.
Targeted Therapy
Targeted therapy is the use of drugs to specifically attack the colon cancer cells, and not the normal healthy cells throughout the body. The most promising targeted therapy is the use of monoclonal antibodies.
The antibodies are synthetically produced in a laboratory and can identify and target a specific substance that is only found on the cancer cells. It can then attach to the cancer cell to kill it, inhibit its growth and keep it from spreading. Some monoclonal antibodies can also carry drugs, toxins or radiation directly to the cancer cells. This type of therapy has the advantage of fewer side effects since the healthy cells are not affected.
