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Between 1980 and 1983, 373 patients with clinically resectable rectal adenocarcinoma entered a prospective randomized study aimed to evaluate the effect of short‐term preoperative radiotherapy. Protocol violations were identified in 21 instances. Of the remaining 352 patients, 182 were randomized to surgical treatment only (S‐group). Immediately, before surgery, 170 patients were irradiated to the pelvic region with 25 Gy (2500 rad) during a 5‐day period (RT‐group). Of these patients, 59% underwent abdominoperineal excision, 38% anterior resection, and 3% laparotomy only. At surgery distant metastases were discovered in 32 patients (9%). There were no significant differences between the groups in the distribution of age, sex, operative methods, and tumor stage according to the original Dukes' classification. During the follow‐up time, ranging between 6 months and 3 years, tumor recurrence occurred in 35 patients, 19 in the S‐group and 16 in the RT‐group. Fifteen patients in the S‐group had pelvic recurrence compared to 10 patients in the RT‐group. Distant metastases occurred in six and eight patients, respectively. Two patients in each group had both pelvic and distant recurrence. There was no correlation between tumor recurrence and type of operation. Median time interval from diagnosis to pelvic recurrence was 10 months in the S‐group and 16 months in the RT‐group. Postoperative complications in the form of wound sepsis were slightly more common in the RT‐group. In summary, the applied treatment regimen, is well‐tolerated and apparently does not affect the Dukes' stage of the tumor. Although there is no statistically significant difference, there is a trend of less pelvic recurrence in patients receiving preoperative radiotherapy. Cancer 55:1182‐1185, 1985.

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Blood and tissue concentrations of doxorubicin (DOX) were assayed after an intraoperative IV test dose of either free DOX 10 mg or its DNA complex 10 mg to patients with gastrointestinal cancer. After administration of the free drug, blood DOX levels decreased in an at least biphasic way, while DOX-DNA gave higher blood concentrations, which decreased slowly with no clear inflexion point on the concentration-time curve within the first hour. Tissue concentrations of DOX did not differ significantly after the two forms of the drug, liver being the tissue with the highest levels, followed by lymph node metastases, tumor tissue, muscle, and normal intestinal mucosa. If skeletal muscle can be used as a substitute for myocardium, lower cardiotoxicity of DOX-DNA than of DOX is not likely to be due to a difference in tissue uptake and retention between the two forms of DOX.