Adjuvant therapy for colon cancer 2005: new options in the twenty-first century

The most effective current regimen for adjuvant treatment of surgically resected stage III colon cancer is the FOLFOX regimen of oxaliplatin, 5-FU and LV for 12 weeks, with a proportional risk reduction of 45% compared with approximately 36% for 5-FU/LV regimens. Infusion regimens of 5-FU with and without LV have been shown to confer equivalent benefit to bolus regimens in reducing the risk of cancer recurrence, but with lesser toxicity profiles. Oral 5-FU prodrug regimens have similarly shown equivalent benefit to bolus regimens, and toxicity comparable to infusional regimens, but with the added convenience over 5-FU infusion therapy. The addition of irinotecan to 5-FU and LV regimens has not demonstrated an advantage compared with 5-FU/LV treatments in the adjuvant setting.