Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Beyond Second-Line Treatment
A special issue of Journal of Clinical Medicine (ISSN 2077-0383). This special issue belongs to the section "Gastroenterology & Hepatopancreatobiliary Medicine".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 February 2026 | Viewed by 16
Special Issue Editor
Interests: gastrointestinal cancers; randomized controlled trials; pharmacoeconomics; colorectal cancer; rectal cancer
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Twenty percent of new CRC have metastatic disease at diagnosis, and 25% who present with localized disease will later develop metastases. Concerning metastatic CRC (mCRC), approximately 70-75% of patients are alive at 1 year, 30-35% beyond 3 years, and 20% beyond 5 years from diagnosis [1]. Clinical outcomes improved in recent years from 16 months to 32 months of overall survival (OS) in mCRC [2]. Different agents have been introduced for the treatment of mCRC beyond second-line treatment, such as regorafenib, trifluridine/tipiracil +- bevacizumab, and fruquintinib, with improvement in OS and disease control. To this we add local therapy, such as transarterial chemoembolization, hepatic artery infusion, and radioembolization in selected patients with metastases limited to the liver [3] and stereotactic radiotherapy in patients with lung metastases [4]. Complete ablation of all visible sites of disease through the use of focal therapies may allow a temporary suspension of the standard of care, such as systemic therapy, with the possibility of a recurrence/disease-free interval. We should also consider other options that presumably change the third-line treatment of mCRC: anti-EGFR rechallenge, anti-HER2 targeted therapies, or the promising results of Pressurized Intraperitoneal Aerosol Chemotherapy (PIPAC) for peritoneal carcinosis [5].
This Special Issue aims to comprehensively evaluate the evolution of treatment options for mCRC beyond second-line treatment.
References
- Biller LH, Schrag D. Diagnosis and Treatment of Metastatic Colorectal Cancer: A Review. JAMA 2021;325:669-685.
- Rodriguez Castells M, Baraibar I, Ros J, Saoudi N, Salvà F, García A, Alcaraz A, Tabernero J, Élez E. The impact of clinical and translational research on the quality of life during the metastatic colorectal cancer patient journey. Front Oncol 2023;13:1272561.
- Foubert F, Matysiak-BudniK T, Touchefeu Y. Options for metastatic colorectal cancer beyond the second line of treatment. Dig Liver Dis 2014;46:105-12.
- Diplas BH, Santos PMG, Shahrokni A, Warner A, Iyengar P, Yang JT, Gomez DR, Palma DA, Tsai CJ. The Role of Ablative Radiotherapy in Older Adults With Limited Metastatic Disease. Semin Radiat Oncol. 2022;32:135-141.
- Ayala-de Miguel C, Jiménez-Castro J, Sánchez-Vegas A, Díaz-López S, Chaves-Conde M. Third-line treatment and beyond in metastatic colorectal cancer: What do we have and what can we expect? Crit Rev Oncol Hematol 2024;202:104454.
Dr. Jacopo Giuliani
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- metastatic colorectal cancer
- subsequent lines
- chemotherapy
- targeted agents
- radiotherapy
- local therapy
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