Carcinoma of the Anal Canal

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Abstract
Carcinoma of the anal canal accounts for 1.5 percent of digestive-system cancers in the United States, with an estimated 3400 new cases in 2000.1 Thirty years ago, anal cancer was believed to be caused by chronic, local inflammation of the perianal area2,3 and was treated with an abdominoperineal resection, necessitating a permanent colostomy.4 As the result of a series of epidemiologic studies, it is now apparent that the development of anal cancer is associated with infection by human papillomavirus, which is usually sexually transmitted. Moreover, in the majority of patients, the condition can be cured by concurrent chemotherapy and . . .