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Rectal cancer trial allows four in five patients to avoid major surgery

A five-country trial coordinated in Birmingham found chemoradiotherapy with smaller surgery only when needed allowed four in five early-stage rectal cancer patients to keep their rectum.

By The TEA Editorial Desk · 28 August 2026

Clinical surgery team in an operating theatre Image: University of BirminghamOriginal source

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A major trial has found that four in five patients receiving a new approach for earlier-stage rectal cancer were able to keep their rectum and avoid the most radical form of surgery.

The STAR-TREC trial involved more than 500 patients in the UK, Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium and Sweden. It tested radiotherapy and chemoradiotherapy, using smaller rectum-preserving operations where needed and reserving radical surgery for patients whose tumours did not respond sufficiently.

Five weeks of chemoradiotherapy produced the strongest organ-preservation result. are now following participants for three more years to compare recurrence and survival before considering how widely the approach should be adopted.

For patients, the possible gain is : effective cancer treatment with a lower chance of permanent bowel changes, urinary or sexual problems and a permanent stoma.