After surgery, some cancer patients can safely avoid treatments such as radiation or chemotherapy, say two recent studies that explore shorter, gentler cancer care.Researchers are looking for ways to predict which cancer patients can avoid unneeded treatment to cut down on costs and bad side effects.One new study used a blood test to study which colon cancer patients could skip, or not have, chemotherapy after surgery.Another study suggests some low-risk breast cancer patients might not need radiation after the surgical removal of a mass or lump, a surgery known as a lumpectomy.The research was discussed recently at the yearly meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).The colon cancer study, financed by the Australian and U.S. governments and nonprofit groups, was recently published by the New England Journal of Medicine.The findings let doctors pay careful attention to "the patients we think would truly benefit from chemotherapy and avoid the side effects for patients for whom it's likely unnecessary," said Dr. Stacey Cohen of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.
