A Study of Clinicopathological Differences Between Right-sided and Left-sided Colon Cancers

Abstract

The present study was aimed to determine the clinicopathological features of cancers of the right-sided colon (cecum, ascending colon, transverse colon) and left-sided colon (descending colon, sigmoid colon) in order to help improve the efficacy of their treatment. Excluding multiple cancer cases, 364 patients with primary colon cancer underwent surgey at our department between 1974 and 1994; they comprised 171 individuals with right-sided colon cancer and 193 with left-sided colon cancer. A comparison of these two groups revealed a higher frequency of tumors at histologically advanced stages and poorer cumulative survival in patients with righ-sided colon cancer. As the mode of recurrence after curative resection, recurrence in lymph nodes or the peritoneum was frequent in patients with right-sided colon cancer. Therefore, prevention of lymph node recurrence and peritoneal dissemination is important in treatment of right-sided colon cancer. This issue is discussed with some comments based on the relevant literature