Do all patients with metastatic colorectal cancer need chemotherapy until disease progression?

The question of continuous versus intermittent chemotherapy for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer has been an ongoing issue of debate for determining the optimum duration of treatment. The results from 2 major trials addressing this issue were recently presented at the 2006 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The OPTIMOX2 trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of oxaliplatin reintroduction after a complete chemotherapy-free interval or maintenance therapy in patients with previously untreated disease. The GISCAD (Italian Group for the Study of Digestive Tract Cancer) study investigated the utility of intermittent versus continuous irinotecan-based chemotherapy. Both studies demonstrated that chemotherapy can be administered intermittently without affecting the overall efficacy of treatment.