Second-line therapy in colorectal cancer.

Second-line therapy is a relatively new concept for gastrointestinal oncologists. Although retreatment with fluorouracil (5-FU) is common, offering colorectal cancer patients a different chemotherapeutic agent as second-line therapy is a fairly recent strategy. The focus of this article is on the use and efficacy of oxaliplatin (Eloxatin) as second-line therapy for colorectal cancer. As such, this article will present very limited data on the toxicity of oxaliplatin regimens.