Which are the key tools for the management of locally recurrent rectal cancer?

Fortunately, locally recurrent rectal cancer (LRRC) has become a rare disease, despite the increase of colon and rectal cancer incidence in many countries, which have successfully introduced a screening program. Apart from being relatively rare, LRRC is also a complex disease, which does not develop in a well-defined anatomical space. A surgical resection requires dissection beyond the regular mesorectal margins to achieve a radically resected specimen without involvement of the surgical margins [1]. Therefore, LRRC qualifies for treatment in specialized centers. Only in these centers, the knowledge and experience to deal with this utmost heterogeneous disease can be built thanks to a large caseload. These patients cannot be dealt with on an ad hoc basis [2].