Colorectal Cancer Research Results and Study Updates

Results from a new study suggest that the presence of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in blood samples can predict which patients with colorectal cancer should and shouldn’t get chemotherapy after surgery to remove their tumors.

The ENLACE study is the first to use cutting-edge technologies to describe the molecular features of colorectal tumors in Hispanic and Latino people. The study’s goals are to improve treatments and increase Hispanic/Latino engagement in cancer research.

Using computer-aided detection (CAD) during a colonoscopy doesn’t help doctors find the growths most likely to become colorectal cancer, two studies find. Researchers agreed that CAD, which is aided by artificial intelligence technology, needs further refinement.

Radiation may not be needed for people undergoing surgery for rectal cancer, a large clinical trial has shown. A combination of two chemotherapy drugs before surgery appears to be as effective as chemo and radiation and may spare patients from long-term side effects.

When colorectal cancer spreads to the liver, it can be very difficult to treat. Cancer is more likely to invade the liver when patients have fatty liver disease. A recent study places the blame on “message bubbles” called extracellular vesicles that are released by the liver.

Researchers have identified four warning signs that they believe may help identify colorectal cancer early in younger adults. The signs or symptoms are abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, diarrhea, and iron deficiency anemia.

A new treatment regimen may help improve the survival of some people with advanced colorectal cancer, according to results from an international clinical trial. The new regimen includes bevacizumab (Avastin) and the combination of trifluridine and tipiracil (Lonsurf).

FDA approved tucatinib (Tukysa) with trastuzumab (Herceptin) to treat HER2-positive advanced colorectal cancer. The approval was based on the MOUNTAINEER trial, in which nearly 40% of participants’ tumors shrank after receiving the drug combination.

In a study in mice, researchers showed that BHB, a compound produced while eating a ketogenic diet, may slow or stop colorectal cancer from growing. More studies are needed, they warned, to see if BHB has similar effects in humans.

People who had a positive FIT result (signs of blood in the stool) but didn’t get a follow-up colonoscopy were twice as likely to die of colorectal cancer as those who did get a colonoscopy, a new study found.

Excess fructose can promote obesity and colorectal cancer, a new study shows. In mice, the study found that the sweetener, a component of table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, increased how long normal and cancer cells in the intestines live.

Researchers have discovered a consistent pattern of DNA damage in colorectal tumors that may explain how a diet high in red and processed meat can help cause colorectal cancer.

Screening people for colorectal cancer after age 75 may be beneficial, a new study suggests. The findings provide helpful information for physicians to use in discussing screening choices with their older patients.

Combining text messaging with mailing people free at-home FIT kits helped increase screening for colorectal cancer among a predominantly Black population, a new study has found. It’s part of a larger effort to reduce disparities in cancer screening.

Diagnoses of colorectal cancer continue to increase in younger adults. In September 2020, more than 400 leading scientists and patient advocates participated in an NCI/NIEHS-sponsored symposium to identify research priorities that address important questions about this concerning trend.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved encorafenib (Braftovi) in combination with cetuximab (Erbitux) to treat adults with metastatic colorectal cancer whose tumors have a specific mutation in the BRAF gene, called V600E.

For people with colorectal cancer with a specific mutation in the BRAF gene, a treatment regimen of three targeted drugs can improve how long they live without increasing their risk of serious side effects, results from a new clinical trial show.

Many colorectal cancers likely have spread long before the original tumor is detected, researchers have found. The findings suggest the need for very early detection and could help identify patients who need more aggressive systemic treatments.

Using novel proteogenomic techniques, scientists from NCI’s Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium have uncovered new features of colon cancer that may guide new treatment strategies.

Findings from an NCI-funded study suggest a new vaccine approach may have the potential to prevent colorectal cancer in people with Lynch syndrome, an inherited condition that increases an individual's risk for developing certain types of cancer.

The FDA has approved the combination of the immune checkpoint inhibitors ipilimumab (Yervoy) and nivolumab (Opdivo) for the treatment of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer whose tumor cells have defects that affect their ability to repair DNA.

Two studies examined the impact of more frequent follow-up testing for cancer recurrence in colorectal cancer survivors. Learn whether the studies showed that frequent testing improved survival.

Colorectal cancer screening reduces deaths from the disease, yet about one-third of Americans aren’t up to date with screening. Learn what happened when people waiting for routine checkups used an app that allowed them to order their own screening test.

People with FAP, an inherited condition that greatly increases their risk of gastrointestinal cancer, who took the drugs erlotinib (Tarceva) and sulindac (Aflodac) saw a substantial decrease in the number of precancerous lesions in the colon and rectum.