Outcomes after Local Excision for Rectal Cancer

Despite its widespread use, the role of local excision for early rectal cancer as a curative therapy remains controversial. Studies are often plagued with low patient numbers, limited follow-up, or heterogeneous populations. In addition, problems with inaccurate staging, inadequate resection margins, and patient selection have limited the ability to interpret, compare, and generalize results. This article will focus on reported outcomes of local excision for early rectal cancer and discuss suggested guidelines. (C) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.