Study of a particular type of colorectal cancer

The aim of this nationwide, multicentre study (RESET-C2) is to investigate the effectiveness and safety of short-term immunotherapy treatment in patients with localised colorectal cancer of the deficient mismatch repair (dMMR) subtype. About one in seven of the 3400 Danes diagnosed with colorectal cancer each year have this subtype.

The study will be carried out at hospitals in all five regions in the country, and will therefore be available to all Danish patients. The study will include a total of 152 patients with newly diagnosed dMMR-type colorectal cancer with no spread to other organs (Stages I-III).

The patients who are assessed as having no remaining cancer cells after treatment will be offered organ preservation under close surveillance. This is a strategy in which researchers expect that treatment for this subgroup of patients can be completely replaced by immunotherapy.

“The study opens a great perspective, both now and in the future, for patients with dMMR-type colorectal cancer. It is expected that the treatment will improve quality of life and reduce the risk of recurrent cancer in this subgroup of patients. If we can show that patients with this type of colorectal cancer respond well to immunotherapy, and surgery can be avoided, it will pave the way for a new treatment to be offered to these patients. In short, a treatment that does not involve surgery,” explains Professor Ismail Gögenur at Zealand University Hospital.