Oncologic treatment strategies and relative survival of patients with stage I–III rectal cancer - A EURECCA international comparison between the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, England, Ireland, Spain, and Lithuania

The aim of this EURECCA international comparison is to compare oncologic treatment strategies and relative survival of patients with stage I–III rectal cancer between European countries. Population-based national cohort data from the Netherlands (NL), Belgium (BE), Denmark (DK), Sweden (SE), England (ENG), Ireland (IE), Spain (ES), and single-centre data from Lithuania (LT) were obtained. All operated patients with (y)pTNM stage I-III rectal cancer diagnosed between 2004 and 2009 were included. Oncologic treatment strategies and relative survival were calculated and compared between neighbouring countries. We included 57,120 patients. Treatment strategies differed between NL and BE (p