Treatment of relapsing anal carcinoma

Between 1983 and 1989, a total of 94 patients were admitted to the Norwegian Radium Hospital for primary squamous cell carcinoma (including 'basaloid' and 'cloacogenic' carcinomas) of the anal canal. Seven patients with evident distant metastases received chemotherapy, while without known distant metastases received combined chemo- and radiotherapy. Of the latter patients, 17 developed distant metastases and 11 local recurrence later on. Patients with distant metastases had a median survival of 12 months (range 3-54 months) following start of chemotherapy (cisplatin + 5-FU or mitomycin C + 5-FU). An abdominoperineal resection was performed on 9 of the 11 patients with local relapse. Of these, 6 patients were alive without evident disease after 3 years of observation.