(WENY) - Every year nearly 50,000 people die of colon cancer in the United States and is the third leading cause of cancer related deaths.
As part of National Colorectal Cancer Awareness month, physicians are trying to push the fact that colon cancer is preventable, beatable and treatable. It's recommended all people get colonscopy at age 50. If you're an african american, you should get screened at age 45. Colon cancer is caused by polyps or abnormal tissue that develop on the colon. By getting a colonscopy doctors can detect the polyp or tissue and remove it before it becomes a cancer. Physican Assistant Daniel Facchia says people 50 years old should get screened every ten years. "Colon cancer doesn't really have signs or symptoms
Colon cancer is expected to be responsible for about 47,700 deaths (23,100 men and 24,600 women) during 2000. About 8,600 people (4,700 men and 3,900 women) will die from rectal cancer during 2000. The death rate from colorectal cancer has been going down for the past 20 years. This may be because there are fewer cases, more of the cases are found early, and treatments have improved.
The signs and symptoms of colon cancer include blood in the stool, weight loss, change in movements in the bowel and fatigue. Most colon cancers are adenocarcinomas because they begin in the cells responsible for making and releasing mucus and other fluids. Colon cancer usually begins as a type of growth known as a polyp which forms in colon or rectum’s inner wall. Some polyps may develop to become cancer after some time. Diagnosing and removing polyps is used to prevent cancer. In the United Kingdom, colon cancer is 3rd most common type of cancer for women and men. However, deaths associated with the cancer have been decreasing after the use of colonoscopies as well as fecal occult blood tests which are used to check for the presence of blood in people’s
Medicare covers this test beginning at age 50 or older (no co-insurance, co-pay or Part B deductible) when it is done for screening only. In some cases this screening method begins as a screening tool and turns into a diagnostic measure. If the health care provider performing the test identifies any polyps or cancerous lesions that require removal and biopsy, the individual will be charged co-insurance or co-pay for the diagnostic testing (ACS, 2017 ). If a precancerous polyp or colorectal cancer is found, a colonoscopy would be required to visualize the entire colon to detect other polyps or cancer (ACS, 2017). The USPSTF (2016) found the benefit of this testing is less beneficial when it is done alone compared to when it is combined with an annual FIT. The availability of flexible sigmoidoscopies has declined in the United States (USPSTF, 2016).
While everyone should begin obtaining regular colonoscopies once they reach the age of 50 (or earlier if there is a history of colon problems in the family), you may need one at a much younger age if your doctor suspects you may have a colon disease, such as ulcerative colitis. If you are experiencing any of the signs of ulcerative colitis, then a colonoscopy is an important part of obtaining an official diagnosis, so you can begin treatment to help control this chronic disease. Read on to find out what to expect when your doctor suspects you have ulcerative colitis.
Sorry to say, some colon cancers might be present without any signs or symptoms. For this reason, it is very important to have regular colon screenings or (examinations) to detect these problems early. The best screening evaluation is a colonoscopy. On the other hand, most colon cancers are connected with signs or symptoms. One of the early signs of colon cancer is bleeding. Most of the time , tumors often bleed only small amounts, off and on, so that evidence of the blood is found only during chemical testing of the stool, which is called a fecal occult blood test. Other signs and symptoms include:
Doctors recommend having regular colonoscopy screenings beginning at age 50, because being over that age is the greatest single risk factor for developing colon polyps. In fact, the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (http://www.asge.org/patients/patients.aspx?id=396) estimates that one out of every four seniors has at least one polyp. And that excludes those who have other risk factors for developing colon cancer or other growths. This means about 25 percent
If your doctor sees a polyp, he or she can snip it out and send it to the lab to be tested for cancer. You may not have any polyps, but you could have one or several. They may or may not be cancerous. The frequency of your future testing will depend on the size, number, and cell characteristics of the polyps removed during your baseline colonoscopy.
Over 1 million people across the country have battled colon cancer and have come out winners. Their survival can squarely be attributed to regular screening and early diagnosis. Here is why-
Colon cancer risks can be reduced by up to 40% through regular exercise. That occurs because regular workouts keep a person in optimum health, and lowers the risk of cancer inducing diseases, such as diabetes. Make staying active your goal.
Squamous cell carcinomas cancer is the most common colon cancer in the United States. It is located within the anal canal and around its walls. This sparks my interest because it is quite odd to me that cancer could occur in the anal canal or outside of it. It really shows how cancer can literally occur anywhere in the body. Even Though it is located in the anal canal, the cause of colorectal cancer is usually due to many other reasons that has nothing to do with the colon itself. These causes are the amount of exercise a person have, any smoking or drinking, even if the person is overweight, or attaining HPV. There are also many causes that can not be changed by your lifestyle, for example if you have the genes to have colorectal cancer or
In just 2016, about 595,690 people in the United States will die because of cancer.
So why use colonoscopies? Surely there are other ways of detection. There are indeed other less evasive procedures such as a barium enema and computed tomography colonography (CTC). However, the main advantage of colonoscopy verses other detection methods is the ability to immediately remove early cancer during the procedure, in real time, as opposed to having a follow-up appointment to do so. So how often is removal of these masses
The NHS have found that bowel cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK, with around 40,000 new cases being diagnosed every single year. This means that approximately 1 in every 20 people will develop bowel cancer at some point within their lifetime. However, the earlier it is detected, the higher the rate of successful treatment and survival. This is why bowel screening is so important. It has been found that around 90% of those who suffer from bowel cancer are over the age of
Understand the symptoms of some types of cancer, like colon cancer, if you hope to catch it. Sudden weight loss, cramping, thin stools and stools that contain blood are all symptoms of colon cancer. If you start to see these symptoms, schedule an appointment with your doctor
There are many risk factors for stomach cancer. Gender is a minor risk factor because men are more likely to get stomach cancer than women are. Age is a risk factor as well because most people are over the age of 65 when they are diagnosed with stomach cancer. Ethnicity is a big risk factor because the rate cancer is higher in Hispanics and African-Americans rather than non-Hispanic white. Tobacco use is a risk factor for stomach cancer along with most of every other type of cancer. Smoking doubles the risk for someone to get cancer. It has been proven that people with Type A Blood are more likely to get stomach cancer as well. Some other risk factors are things like bacteria infection, diet, earlier stomach surgery, stomach polyps, and oddly enough, some occupations in coal, metal, and rubber industries are even risk factors of stomach cancer.