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MSKCC Colon Cancer Nomogram

This tool, known as a nomogram, can be used to predict the probability of being disease-free from colon cancer five to ten years following complete resection (surgical removal of all cancerous tissue). It is designed to help patients and physicians make decisions on further treatment and plan long-term follow-up.

The colorectal cancer nomogram is based on a database of 1,320 patients with nonmetastatic colon cancer treated at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. It provides a more accurate picture of the five- or ten-year risk of recurrence than older assessment tools, such as the staging system of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC).

This predictive tool may also be used by researchers to help design and evaluate clinical trials.

Who Is This Tool For?
This tool can be used to predict probability of being disease-free from colon cancer after surgery, assuming that all of the primary cancer was completely removed during the original surgery. The nomogram is for patients who have localized colon cancer that shows no evidence of metastasis, or spread beyond the colon, before or at the time of surgery. This means that only patients with tumors found in the colon — between the pouch that forms the first part of the large intestine (known as the cecum) and the S-shaped section of the colon that connects to the rectum (the rectosigmoid, or sigmoid, colon) — should use this tool. Patients using this nomogram may or may not have had chemotherapy.

The tool should be used by physicians. Patients should use this tool only in consultation with their physicians.

To use this tool, click here.

Tags: Prediction tool