Copyright
©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Oncol. Jul 15, 2014; 6(7): 194-210
Published online Jul 15, 2014. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v6.i7.194
Published online Jul 15, 2014. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v6.i7.194
Genotypic characteristics of resistant tumors to pre-operative ionizing radiation in rectal cancer
Zeeshan Ramzan, Ammar B Nassri, Sergio Huerta, VA North Texas Healthcare System-Dallas VA Medical Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75216, United States
Author contributions: Ramzan Z and Huerta S made substantial contributions to conception and design, acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data, drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, final approval of the version to be published; Nassri AB made contributions to design, analysis and interpretation of data, drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, final approval of the version to be published.
Correspondence to: Zeeshan Ramzan, MD, Assistant Professor, VA North Texas Healthcare System-Dallas VA Medical Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 4500 S Lancaster Road, Dallas, TX 75216, United States. zeeshanramzan@hotmail.com
Telephone: +1-214-8571591 Fax: +1-214-8571571
Received: December 17, 2013
Revised: March 19, 2014
Accepted: May 8, 2014
Published online: July 15, 2014
Revised: March 19, 2014
Accepted: May 8, 2014
Published online: July 15, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip: Treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer stage II and III includes neoadjuvant chemo-radiation followed by surgery if clinically feasible. A strategy of observing patients without an operation has been proposed by some surgeons, but this is still the center of much debate. Moreover, the therapeutic effect of ionizing radiation in treatment of rectal cancer varies significantly from one person to another. This has led investigators to identify the molecular targets and pathways in rectal tumors resistant to ionizing radiation in a bid to improve the therapeutic effect of radiation by advanced biomedical and genetic engineering.