NCCN publishes 20th annual editions of NCCN Guidelines for Colon and Rectal Cancers

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) has published the 20th annual editions of the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®) for Colon and Rectal Cancers, two of the eight original NCCN Guidelines® published in November 1996.

"A lot has changed in the treatment of colorectal cancer since 1996," said Al B. Benson, III, MD, FACP, FASCO, Professor of Medicine and Associate Director for Clinical Investigations, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, and Chair of the NCCN Guidelines Panels for Colon and Rectal Cancers. "The evolution of treatment includes not only additional chemotherapy agents but also targeted biologic therapies. Physicians now have multiple lines of therapies with more choices of combinations available, which can be broken down appropriately as initial therapy, and therapy following progression."

Dr. Benson, who has been a member of the NCCN Guidelines Panels for Colon and Rectal Cancers since their inception in 1996, noted that advancements in the continuum of care in metastatic colorectal cancer have resulted in a major improvement in median survival as compared with 1996, and adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer with FOLFOX and CapeOx has also improved survival. Further, discovery of molecular markers, such as MSI and KRAS, have set the stage for more targeted patient care.

"The original set of guidelines emphasized multidisciplinary evaluation and multimodality therapy of large bowel cancer," said Paul F. Engstrom, MD, Professor and Chairman, Medical Oncology, Fox Chase Cancer Center, and founding Chair of the NCCN Guidelines Panels for Colon and Rectal Cancers. "Over the years, the Guidelines have become the standard of care and the framework for chemotherapy options, as well as chemotherapy reimbursement."

Today, NCCN develops and publishes a library of 59 NCCN Guidelines, covering 97% of malignant cancers. The NCCN Guidelines are developed and updated through an evidence-based process in which the expert panels integrate comprehensive clinical and scientific data with the judgment of the multidisciplinary panel members and other experts drawn from NCCN Member Institutions. Access to the complete library of NCCN Guidelines is available free-of-charge to clinicians at NCCN.org.

"NCCN is proud to publish the 20th annual editions of the NCCN Guidelines for Colon and Rectal Cancers," said Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, NCCN. "NCCN extends its gratitude to the NCCN Guidelines Panel Members for Colon and Rectal cancers. With their expertise and service, the NCCN Guidelines have indeed provided free, evidence-based treatment recommendations to benefit patients and clinicians in academic and community settings alike."

On March 12 - 14, 2015, the NCCN 20th Annual Conference: Advancing the Standard of Cancer Care™ will be held at The Diplomat in Hollywood, Florida. In recognition of NCCN's 20th anniversary, NCCN is planning to hold a special live roundtable during the NCCN Annual Conference comprised of NCCN leadership—past and present—as well as other stakeholders who have had a significant impact on the development, progression, and success of NCCN over the years; noteworthy historical NCCN accomplishments and events will be discussed, as well as the impact NCCN has had and continues to have on the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of cancer care so that patients can live better lives.