What Treatments Options Are There for Colon Cancer?

What Treatments Options Are There for Colon Cancer? (1:09)

Colon cancer treatment varies depending on when the cancer is detected, says Daniel Labow, MD, an oncology surgeon. In this video, he explains that some polyps can be removed during colonoscopy. Advanced cancers may require chemotherapy and surgery.

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Treatments very based on the extent or the advanced stage of the colon cancer hopefully early. Sometimes if you catch a polyp that has just become cancerous, it could be treated with colonoscopy alone and taking out the polyps. If it's progressed to a slightly more invasive stage, surgery for the earlier stages is usually curative and can be the only treatment necessary that's for stage one and two before the cancer has gone into the lymph nodes that are in the area around the colon.

After it's grown a little bit more then surgery in combination with chemotherapy the intravenous chemotherapy that occurs after the surgery is done is the treatment and then ultimately if it's already spread, that depends on the situation. Sometimes surgery is involved sometimes just chemotherapy and of course the goal is to get it before it spreads outside the area of the colon.