Recent advances in the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer.

The treatment of advanced colorectal cancer has improved in recent years. Prospective randomized trials comparing innovative therapies with the "standard" bolus dose of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) found increased response rates after biochemical modification of the drug, infusion administration of 5-FU, and direct intrahepatic arterial infusion. Although the impact on survival of these techniques has been minimal, it is possible that these innovative approaches provide an incremental survival advantage for certain subgroups of patients that may be the foundation for additional therapeutic improvements in the future.