SUMMARY
The multidisciplinary management of rectal cancer is an evolving field, and these guidelines seek to offer direction for treating this condition. A tailored treatment approach should be based on a multi-disciplinary tumour board discussion taking into account tumour staging, patient performance status, and expectations. Patients with node-negative T1 rectal cancer can be managed by a local excision. In patients with early rectal cancer, primary surgery is the standard-of-care. In some of these patients, an organ-sparing approach by long-course chemoradiotherapy can be an alternative. A total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT)-approach consisting of a combination of (chemo)radiotherapy and chemotherapy is preferred for locally advanced disease.
(BELG J MED ONCOL 2024;18(7):271–278)
