Improving survival in patients with rectal cancer.

Adenocarcinoma of the rectum accounts for approximately 5 percent of new cancer cases and for an estimated 31 percent of new cases of colorectal cancer. Although surgical resection remains the treatment of choice for almost all cases of this disease, a significant number of patients will develop locoregional recurrence after surgery if no other treatment is given. Relatively modest doses of radiation may improve long-term survival and can prevent locoregional relapse after surgery in many high-risk patients.