Surgery Alone Versus Neoadjuvant Treatment Followed by Surgery For MRI-defined T3 Mid-low Rectal Cancer: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Neoadjuvant treatments (nCRT) are becoming the standard treatment for patients with stage II or stage III mid-low rectal cancer. In fact, with the introduction of total mesorectal excision, the local recurrence has been reduced significantly. Recently few studies have shown that surgery alone is enough for patients with T3 rectal cancer. These issues raised the question of whether nCRT is needed for all T3 rectal cancer patients. Therefore, this study was designed to compare the long-term oncological outcomes between surgery and surgery following nCRT among patients with MRI-defined T3, clear MRF mid-low rectal cancer.