Colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer is among the most common cancers — but also among the most treatable when caught early. Modern minimally invasive and robotic surgery offers a real chance of cure, with far less impact on your everyday life.
What colorectal cancer is
Colorectal cancer is a malignant tumour that develops in the colon or the rectum. In most cases it does not appear suddenly: it forms gradually, over several years, from a polyp — a small growth of the lining that, left untreated, can turn malignant.
This slow evolution is good news: a polyp found at colonoscopy can be removed before it ever becomes cancer, and a cancer detected at an early stage has a very high chance of cure.
The distinction between colon and rectum matters for treatment. Rectal cancer sits in a narrow anatomical space — the pelvis — close to the nerves controlling urinary and sexual function, and often requires combined treatment with chemoradiotherapy before surgery. Here, the precision of the surgical approach makes the difference.
When to see a doctor
The symptoms below do not necessarily mean cancer — most have harmless causes. But when they persist, they always deserve to be investigated.
Bleeding
Blood in the stool or rectal bleeding, bright or dark in colour.
Change in bowel habit
Persistent constipation or diarrhoea, or stools thinner than usual.
Incomplete emptying
A feeling that the bowel does not empty completely (tenesmus).
Abdominal discomfort
Pain, cramping or bloating that keeps coming back.
Anaemia & fatigue
Unexplained iron-deficiency anaemia, pallor, persistent tiredness.
Weight loss
Losing weight with no obvious cause, loss of appetite.
Worth remembering: colorectal cancer can be completely silent in its early stages — precisely the stages at which it is most curable. Waiting for symptoms is not a strategy. Screening, started at the recommended age, detects the disease before it gives any sign.
From suspicion to a clear plan
The diagnosis is established step by step, and the treatment strategy is decided by a multidisciplinary team — not by a single doctor.
Colonoscopy
Allows direct visualisation of the whole colon, biopsy, and often removal of polyps in the same session — both a diagnostic and a preventive tool.
Staging imaging
CT (chest, abdomen, pelvis) assesses the extent of disease. For rectal cancer, pelvic MRI is added — essential for planning.
Blood tests & tumour marker
Blood tests and the CEA marker complete the picture and are useful mainly for follow-up after treatment.
Multidisciplinary team
Surgeon, oncologist, radiologist and radiotherapist together define the TNM stage and the optimal strategy, per European guidelines (ESMO, ESCP).
Surgery — the heart of the cure
For most colorectal cancers, surgery offers the best chance of cure. The principle is constant: complete removal of the segment bearing the tumour, together with its draining lymph nodes, respecting safe oncological margins.
Minimally invasive colectomy
Resection of the affected segment (right, left or sigmoid) via a laparoscopic or robotic approach, with rigorous lymphadenectomy and restoration of bowel continuity.
Total mesorectal excision (TME)
The oncological standard in rectal cancer — removal of the tumour in a precise anatomical plane, with sphincter preservation whenever oncologically feasible.
Precision in the pelvis
In the narrow pelvic space, the robotic approach protects the nerves controlling urinary and sexual function. About robotic surgery →
Complex resections
In locally advanced tumours — multivisceral resections; for liver metastases, a strategy integrated with treatment of the primary tumour.
In some locally advanced rectal cancers, surgery is preceded by chemoradiotherapy to shrink the tumour and improve the chance of a complete resection. After surgery, some patients benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy. All of these decisions are made individually, within the multidisciplinary team, and explained to you clearly before proceeding.
Screening saves lives — literally
Colorectal cancer is one of the few cancers that can be prevented, not only treated. Screening colonoscopy allows polyps to be found and removed before they ever become malignant.
Screening is generally recommended from the age of 45, and earlier if you have a family history of colorectal cancer or other risk factors. A single, timely investigation can change everything.
Discuss your caseWhy the surgeon's experience matters
In colorectal surgery, the oncological outcome and quality of life after the operation depend directly on the volume and experience of the operating team.
resections
experience
console surgeon
decision
The first step is a conversation.
International patients welcome. Begin with a remote second opinion — share your records and receive an honest assessment of your options.
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