What Is the Treatment for Stage 4 Colon Cancer?
Surgery may be required on an emergency basis, such as when the size of the tumor in the colon is so large that it is causing an obstruction, preventing the passage of fecal matter. Surgery may also be the first form of treatment when there are only a few, relatively small, tumors in an organ other than the colon. When the number of these tumors become too numerous or their size becomes too large, surgery may no longer be an option, at least initially. Under these circumstances, chemotherapy, avastin, (and possibly ratiation therapy) may be used in an attempt to reduce the size and/or number of these tumors. If this part of the treatment is successful, surgery may become a viable option. Even if surgery does not become an option, it may still be possible to temporarily stop or at least slow down the progression of the disease. In some cases, the disease may advance so far or may cause so much damage that treatment is no longer an option. In such cases, the patient is normally provided
