Hope for Colorectal Cancer Patients

A study published on March 30th in the Journal of the American Medical Association Surgery reveals new possibilities for those diagnosed with colorectal cancer, one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths.  

Colorectal cancer tumors tend to spread to the liver, and are unable to be removed without the patients receiving a full liver transplant. Prior to the official release of this study, the long waitlist for deceased-donor livers had been leaving patients with no transplant options.. Conducted across the University of Rochester Medical Center, the University Health Network (UHN) and the Cleveland Clinic, the study focused on patients who have systematically controlled colorectal cancer and liver tumors. 

The first in North America, this study proved living-donor liver transplant a viable last resort for colorectal cancer patients by focusing on 10 patients who underwent a living-donor living transplant surgery between July 2017 and October 2020. A year and a half after living-donor-transplant, all 10 patients remained alive. A researcher from the study, Kaplan-Meir, estimates the recurrence-free and overall survival rates at 1.5 years after living-donor-transplant to be 62% and 100%, respectively. 

The study’s findings suggest that patients with liver-confined colorectal cancer may benefit from living-donor liver transplant. With this new information, colorectal cancer patients can potentially undergo tumor removal at a faster rate, increasing the survival rate.

Source:

“Living Donation Opens New Doors for Colorectal Cancer Patients in Need of Liver Transplants.” URMC Newsroom, urmcnewsroom.iprsoftware.com/story/living-donation-opens-new-doors-for-colorectal-cancer-patients-in-need-of-liver-transplants. Accessed 31 Mar. 2022.

“Living Organ Donors Open New Doors for Colorectal Cancer Patients in Need of Liver Transplants.” Finance.yahoo.com, finance.yahoo.com/news/living-organ-donors-open-doors-175200834.html.

Hernandez-Alejandro R, Ruffolo LI, Sasaki K, et al. Recipient and Donor Outcomes After Living-Donor Liver Transplant for Unresectable Colorectal Liver Metastases. JAMA Surg. Published online March 30, 2022. doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2022.0300

Institute, Wilmot Cancer. “Living Organ Donors Open New Doors for Colorectal Cancer Patients in Need of Liver Transplants.” Www.prnewswire.com, www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/living-organ-donors-open-new-doors-for-colorectal-cancer-patients-in-need-of-liver-transplants-301514092.html. Accessed 31 Mar. 2022.