Large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine tumours
Large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine cancers are rare cancers. They start in the 
of the or . You might also hear them called neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs). This means the same as neuroendocrine cancer.
There are 2 key groups of large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine cancer:
- neuroendocrine tumours (NETs)
- neuroendocrine carcinomas (NECs)
NETs and NECs are very different. So it is important to know which one you have. Talk to your doctor or specialist nurse if you are not sure.
Large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine cancer needs different treatments to other more common types of bowel (colorectal) cancer.
What are large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine cancers?
Large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine cancers are rare cancers. There are different types including neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) and neuroendocrine carcinomas (NECs).
Grades, types and stages of large bowel and rectal neuroendocrine cancers
The grade shows how quickly or slowly your cancer cells are dividing and growing. The stage refers to the size of the cancer, and whether it has spread.
Treatment for large bowel and rectal NETs
Treatment depends on where the cancer started, its size and whether it has spread. Surgery is the main treatment for large bowel and rectal NETs.
Follow up for large bowel and rectal NETs
You have regular appointments after you finish treatment.
Survival for large bowel and rectal NETs
Survival for large bowel and rectal NETs depends on many factors. There are general statistics on this page, so they can’t tell you what will happen in your individual case.
Research and clinical trials for large bowel and rectal NETs
Researchers are looking at the biology of NETs and trying to improve the diagnosis and treatment of bowel NETs.
Living with NETs
Get practical and emotional support to help you cope with a neuroendocrine tumour.
