Effects of gene expression pattern and RAS/BRAF mutations on the course of colorectal cancer

Background and study aims
Colorectal cancer, otherwise known as bowel cancer, is a disease where cancerous tumors develop in the large bowel (colon cancer) and cancer of the back passage (rectal cancer). Currently, histological characteristics of the tumor (i.e. its structure) and whether there are mutations to the KRAS or BRAF genes are used to predict the likely clinical course of colorectal cancer (i.e. the prognosis). Analysis of the expression profile of the tumor (a test that identifies which genes have been mutated) can increase the prognostic significance of molecular characteristics (distinguishing features of the individual cancer cells) for colorectal cancer. The aim of this study is to find out how well this new technology can help in the prognosis of this disease.
Who can participate?
Adults with potentially curable colorectal cancer that have not had chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy before surgery.
What does the study involve?
Tumors that have been removed from patients though surgery have their expression profile analysed. After this analysis, they are assigned to one of five different subtypes, including, stem-like, inflammatory, transit-amplifying, goblet-like and enterocyte. Patients with stage 1 cancer are then followed up three years after the surgery. Patients with stage III-IV are treated with chemotherapy according to common oncological practice. Patients with stage II receive either chemotherapy or not depending upon the decision of a chemotherapist. Follow up for all patients in the study is 3 years after surgery to see how long they survived disease free, how long it took them to relapse (if they did so) and how long did they survive for after surgery.