Patients underwent anterior or low anterior resection. Patients with tumors in the lower third of the rectum where anal sphincters could not be preserved underwent abdominoperineal resection. In majority of the cases, inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) was ligated caudal to the origin of the left colic artery. For the tumors of the upper rectum, partial excision of the mesorectum was performed up to the minimum of 5 cm from the inferior aspect of the tumor. For the tumors of the middle and low rectum a total mesorectum excision was done with the minimum distal mucosal margin of 1 to 2 cm. Ileostomy was performed in cases where colon was poorly prepared, anastomotic leak test was positive or colonel anastomosis was made. In most of the cases, open surgery was performed. Laparoscopic surgery was performed in selected cases. Wide local excision was performed in selected cases with T1 tumors without locoregional lymphadenopathy.

Patients with locally advanced disease (T3, T4) or lymph nodal positive disease were offered neoadjuvant therapy. In the neoadjuvant therapy, we used 45 Gy in 25 fractions with concurrent 5-fluorouracil [5-FU] and patients were operated 8 to 10 weeks after neoadjuvant therapy. In some cases, especially the elderly patients with multiple co-morbidities, we used short-course pelvic radiation therapy which included 25 Gy in 5 fractions over 1 week.

Patients with locally advanced disease (T3, T4) or lymph nodal positive disease were offered adjuvant therapy. In most of the cases, FOLFOX (leucovorin, 5-FU, oxaliplatin) regimen was used and for elderly patients who could not tolerated this regimen, we used oral capecitabine.

the development of any new malignant lesion within the field of surgery (locoregional recurrence) or outside it (distant metastasis) after initial resection was judged to be curative (R0) based on the preoperative imaging and histopathological examination of the resected specimen.