QUASAR

Regimen

Experimental
Fluorouracil + folinic acid (6 × 5-day courses or 30 weekly courses)
Control
Observation (no adjuvant chemotherapy)

Population

Stage II (91%) and low-risk stage III colorectal cancer (N=3,239, predominantly stage II colon cancer), adjuvant fluorouracil vs observation.

Key finding

Stage II colorectal cancer: chemotherapy (FL) vs observation: RR death 0.82 (95% CI 0.70-0.95, P=0.008); absolute OS benefit ~3.6% at 5 years (NNT ~28). Small but statistically significant benefit establishing that even stage II patients may derive some benefit from FL, though absolute gain is modest.

Source: PMID 18083404

Timeline

    Guideline citations

    • NCCN Colon (p.94)