Localized vs. Systemic Treatments

Treatments for colorectal cancer can be separated into two types:

• Localized or Systemic

While a localized treatment acts locally, so only on the tumor without affecting the rest of the body, a systemic one spreads through the body.

Systemic-acting drugs can be administered orally or into the bloodstream through a catheter, and reach part or all the body to kill malignant cells, including the ones that have spread to other organs.

Examples of localized treatment are surgery or radiotherapy, while systemic therapies include chemotherapy or targeted therapies.

In colorectal cancer, there are still some localized chemotherapy treatments called regional chemotherapy.  (regional chemotherapy ).

To make things easier to understand, we decided to maintain this classification (localized vs systemic ) when describing the treatments available.