[Pathologic characteristics and the rational surgical treatment of rectal carcinoma]

122 cases with rectal carcinoma were operated by radical resection. The 5 year survival rate was 60.3%. The patho-biological characters of the rectal carcinoma were studied. The results showed that the prognosis of the rectal carcinoma was much better than that of gastric carcinoma due to the fact that most of the rectal carcinoma was localized with low metastatic rate to the lymphatics and its growth patterns are pushing and nest-like. For rational surgical treatment, it is necessary to have a clear understanding of the patho-biologic characters, staging and location of the rectal carcinoma preoperatively.