Published online Aug 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i29.9775
Revised: January 17, 2014
Accepted: April 21, 2014
Published online: August 7, 2014
Processing time: 312 Days and 12.3 Hours
Core tip: Insufficient effectiveness of chemotherapy is still the most important factor limiting the successful treatment of patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). Drug resistance in anticancer therapy has been recognized virtually from the very beginning, as cytostatic drugs were first used in oncology practice. Intensive research on the causes of low sensitivity in colorectal cancer cells to such drugs as fluoropyrimidines, irinotecan and oxaliplatin, has resulted in evidence on the importance of genetic factors in phenotype conditioning of drug resistance. This review is a synthetic presentation of drug resistance in the context of its role in chemotherapy, and the potential clinical use of different biomarkers in individualization of CRC patient treatment.