Accuracy of Baseline Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Staging Rectal Cancer Patients Proceeding Directly to Surgery.

Background And Objectives: High-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) accuracy for staging preoperative rectal cancer varies across studies. We examined MRI accuracy for T- and N-staging of rectal cancer compared with final histopathology of the resected specimen in a large Australian cohort who did not receive neoadjuvant therapy or radiation.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of prospectively-collected clinical data from 153 rectal adenocarcinomas locally staged by high-resolution MRI between January 2012 and December 2019 that did not undergo chemoradiotherapy or radiation before surgery.

Body composition assessment by artificial intelligence can be a predictive tool for short-term postoperative complications in Hartmann's reversals.

Background: Hartmann's reversal, a complex elective surgery, reverses and closes the colostomy in individuals who previously underwent a Hartmann's procedure due to colonic pathology like cancer or diverticulitis. It demands careful planning and patient optimisation to help reduce postoperative complications. Preoperative evaluation of body composition has been useful in identifying patients at high risk of short-term postoperative outcomes following colorectal cancer surgery.

Artificial intelligence measured 3D body composition to predict pathological response in rectal cancer patients.

Background: The treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) is moving towards total neoadjuvant therapy and potential organ preservation. Of particular interest are predictors of pathological complete response (pCR) that can guide personalized treatment. There are currently no clinical biomarkers which can accurately predict neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) response but body composition (BC) measures present as an emerging contender.

Colorectal cancer treatment outcomes during the pandemic: Our experience of COVID-19 at a tertiary referral center.

Backgrounds: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has led to major shifts in the management of colorectal cancer (CRC). This study aims to identify the impact and early outcomes of COVID-19 following CRC management at a tertiary referral center in Victoria, Australia.

Methods: This was a retrospective study, utilizing the Australian Comprehensive Cancer Outcomes and Research Database and inpatient records.