How to treat rectal cancer after it spreads?

Rectal cancer is a common malignant tumor in the gastrointestinal tract, with an incidence rate second only to gastric and esophageal cancer. It is the most common part of colorectal cancer. The vast majority of patients are over 40 years old, and those under 30 years old account for about 15%. It is more common in men, with a male-female ratio of 2-3:1. Rectal cancer is a lifestyle disease with a relatively hidden onset. Most patients have already developed to the late stage when diagnosed. Late-stage rectal cancer has often spread to distant places. The treatment of rectal cancer after spread and metastasis is particularly important. The effect of treatment after the spread and metastasis of rectal cancer determines the length of survival of rectal cancer patients. So how should rectal cancer patients be treated after spread?

At present, in the world of medicine, the treatment of colorectal cancer metastasis mainly includes surgical treatment, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and biological treatment. However, each treatment method is ineffective when used alone, and combined treatment is needed to achieve satisfactory results.

Let’s first talk about the surgical treatment of colorectal cancer after it has spread and metastasized. The progression of colorectal cancer is that tumor cells invade the colon mucosa layer, muscle layer, and then the outer cortex layer. In the early stages of colorectal cancer, since tumor cells only invade the mucosa layer, surgical resection can achieve good therapeutic effects. In the late stages, the lesions metastasize and turn into systemic diseases. The overall quality of the patients is poor, and most of them can no longer tolerate the trauma caused by surgical resection. Moreover, it is not easy to completely remove the cancer by surgery. Therefore, the treatment of colorectal cancer after it has spread and metastasized cannot be done with surgery alone.

Next are radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy are one of the three major treatments for cancer. It is a treatment method that uses various rays of different energies to irradiate tumors to inhibit and kill cancer cells. Radiotherapy can be used alone or in combination with surgery, chemotherapy, etc. as part of comprehensive treatment to improve the cure rate of cancer. A period of radiotherapy before surgery can reduce the size of the tumor, so that patients who were originally unable to undergo surgery can have the opportunity to undergo surgery. For advanced cancer, palliative radiotherapy can be used to relieve compression and relieve pain. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy can reduce the tumor cell load locally or systemically and have a quick effect, but it cannot eradicate tumor cells, is prone to metastasis and recurrence, has large systemic toxic side effects, and causes damage to the human immune function. Therefore, patients with postoperative metastasis and recurrence of rectal cancer are not suitable for radiotherapy and chemotherapy. So how should patients with rectal cancer be treated after the spread?

Biological immunotherapy can expand the effects of cellular and antibody immune responses through immune-active cells and enhance the host's anti-tumor ability. Its efficacy has been increasingly recognized. DC+CIK biological therapy is the fourth type of cancer treatment method developed after surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. It uses and stimulates the body's immune response to fight, inhibit and kill cancer cells. Different from traditional treatment methods, biological therapy mainly mobilizes the body's natural anti-cancer ability and restores the balance of the body's internal environment, which is equivalent to "strengthening the body and harmonizing yin and yang" in traditional Chinese medicine. Immunotherapy and gene therapy are both biological therapies, and immunotherapy is currently the most widely used in clinical practice.

The entire treatment process of the "DC+CIK tumor biotherapy" technology is divided into three parts: collection of patient peripheral blood mononuclear cells, in vitro induction and re-infusion.

Since biotherapy technology uses the body's own immune cells rather than traditional chemicals to kill tumor cells, it is safe and has no toxic side effects and is suitable for the treatment of all stages of cancer.

The above is the treatment method after the spread of rectal cancer. Expert Tips: If your health has symptoms of disease, you can choose the appropriate treatment according to your symptoms, but do not delay diagnosis, and do not let your life be ruined in hesitation. You should go to a regular hospital for treatment in time to avoid delaying the disease and causing serious consequences. If you have other questions, please consult our online experts or call for consultation. Believe in miracles, I wish you health, happiness, and joy!