Difference in the recurrence rate between right- and left-sided colon cancer: a 17-year experience at a single institution

PURPOSE: The prognostic differences between right- and left-sided colon cancer are controversial. This study aimed to clarify the clinical difference between right- and left-sided colon cancer. METHODS: We enrolled 820 patients with stage I/II/III colon cancer who underwent radical surgery with curative intent. We explored the impact of the tumor location on the postoperative disease-free survival (DFS) rate using the univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Right-sided disease occurred in 399 of the 820 patients. The mean follow-up period was 55.8 ± 34.9 months. The pathological stage distribution was as follows: stage I 261 patients; stage II 283; and stage III 251. There were no significant differences in the five-year DFS of the overall populations (right 88.6 %; left 89.4 %; P = 0.231). The subgroup analyses demonstrated that patients with stage I right-sided colon cancer had a significantly better 5-year DFS rate than did those with left-sided disease (100 vs. 95.2 %, P = 0.034). There were no significant differences in the distributions of the first recurrent sites (P = 0.559). CONCLUSIONS: The tumor location may contribute to postoperative tumor recurrence. However, these effects were inconsistent across tumor stages. Our results provide a better understanding of the prognostic disparity between tumor locations; this may improve patient consent and postoperative surveillance.