With around 120 new cases per day in the UK, colon cancer, also known as colorectal cancer, is the fourth most common cancer and accounts for 11% of all new cancer cases. While the cancer mostly affects people over 75, accounting for 43% of all cases, incidences of the cancer being diagnosed in people under 55 have doubled since the 1990s.
Colon cancer is also the 2nd most common cause of cancer death in the UK and accounts for 10% of all cancer deaths.
However, thanks to a groundbreaking new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, four symptoms have been identified that could be early indicators of colon cancer - showing up to two years before a colon cancer diagnosis.
Early Symptoms Of Colon Cancer
Yin Cao, ScD, an associate professor of surgery in the Public Health Sciences Division, and a research member of Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington School of Medicine said:
“We want younger adults to be aware of and act on these potentially very telling signs and symptoms,” Cao added. “Particularly because people under 50 are considered to be at low risk, and they don’t receive routine colorectal cancer screening.”
In the study, researchers were looking to identify any signs or symptoms that could be early indicators of the cancer as, according to the American Cancer Society, while it is becoming more common with younger people, it’s often found at an advanced stage. According to the organisation, the proportion of colon cancer among people aged 55 and younger cases rose from 11% to 20% between 1995 and 2019.
The early symptoms of colon cancer are:
- Abdominal pain
- Rectal bleeing
- Diarrhoea
- Iron deficiency anemia
What Are The Symptoms Of Colon Cancer?
According to the Royal Marsden NHS Trust, the most common symptoms of the cancer are:
- A change of bowel habits - this could be constipation or alternating bouts of constipation and diarrhoea
- Blood or mucus in stools
- A feeling that you haven’t fully emptied your bowels
- Colicky pain or discomfort in the abdomen
- Listless or tiredness
If you have any of these symptoms for six or more weeks, speak to your doctor.