Marital status and survival in patients with rectal cancer: An analysis of the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database.

•Marital status is an independent prognostic factor for survival in rectal cancer (RC).•We extracted and analyzed rectal cancer patient data from the SEER database.•Married patients were more likely to receive surgery compared to the widowed, never married and divorced/separated patients.•In patients with stage I-IV RC, widowed patients are at higher risk of cancer specific mortality.