Colon Cancer: Signs, Causes, Survival Rate, Stages, Handling & Prevention

• Things to Know
  • Things to know well-nigh colon cancer (colorectal cancer)
  • What iscancer?
  • What is the colon, and what does it do?
  • Where is the colon located?
  • What is colorectal cancer?
• Causes
  • What are colon cancer risk factors as well as causes?
• Symptoms/Signs
  • What are the signs too symptoms of colon cancer?
• Screening/Diagnosis
  • What tests can be done to observe and diagnose colon cancer?
• 4 Stages
  • What are the stages of coloncancer?
• Survival Rates
  • What are colon cancer survival rates?
• Treatment
  • What are colon cancer treatments? Stage IV treatment
  • What is the follow-upward attention for colon cancer?
• Prognosis
  • What is the prognosis for patients with colorectal cancer?
• Prevention
  • Is it possible to forbid colon cancer?
• Center
  • Related Resources – Colon Cancer (Colorectal Cancer)
• Comments
  • PatientComments: Colon Cancer – Diagnosis
  • Patient Comments: Colon Cancer – Symptoms
  • Patient Comments: Colon Cancer – Treatment
  • Patient Comments: Colon Cancer – Experience
  • Patient Comments: Colon Cancer – Life Change
• More
  • Find a local Oncologist in your town

Things to know almost colon cancer(colorectal cancer)

• Colorectal cancer is a malignant tumor arising from the inner wall of the bigintestine (colon) or rectum.
• Colorectal cancer is the 3rd leading crusade ofcancer inward both men and women inward the U.southward.
• Common risk factors for colorectal cancer include increasing age, African-American race, a family history of colorectal cancer,colon polyps, as well as long-standing ulcerative colitis.
• Most colorectal cancers develop from polyps. Removal ofcolon polyps tin aid inward the prevention of colorectal cancer.
• Colon polyps and early on cancer may have no cancer-specific early signs or symptoms. Therefore, regular colorectal cancer screening is of import.
• Diagnosis ofcolorectal cancer tin be made by sigmoidoscopy or by colonoscopy with biopsy confirmation of cancerous tissue.
• Treatment of colorectal cancer depends on the location, size, as well as extent of cancer spread, as well as the health of thepatient.
• Surgery is the most common medical treatment for colorectal cancer.
• Early-stage colorectal cancers are typically treatable past surgery alone.
• Chemotherapy can extend life and improve the lineament of life for those who have got had or are living with metastatic colorectal cancer. It can also trim down the risk of recurrence inwards patients institute to hold high-risk colon cancer findings at surgery.

Colon Cancer Symptoms

Signs in addition to symptoms of colon cancer tend not to live specific. In other words, the signs and symptoms can occur due to a number of dissimilar weather condition. When colon cancer is detected inwards its early on stages, it may non have fifty-fifty caused symptoms. Symptoms tin also vary according to the specific location within the colon where the tumor is located.

Some symptoms and signs of colon cancer are:

• rectal haemorrhage or blood inward the stool,
• dark-colored stool,
• alter in bowelhabits,
• modify inward stool consistency,
• constipation,
• diarrhea,
• narrow stools.

What is cancer?

Every twenty-four hour period within our bodies, a massive physical process of devastation too repair occurs. The human torso is comprised of nearly fifteen trillion cells, in addition to every day billions of cellswear out or are destroyed. In most cases, each time a prison cell is destroyed the body makes a novel cell to supervene upon it, trying to brand a cell that is a perfect re-create of the prison cell that was destroyed because the replacement prison cell must be capable of performing the same role as the destroyed jail cell. During the complex physical process of replacing cells, many errors occur. Despite remarkably elegant systems inward position to forestall errors, the body soundless makes tens of thousands of mistakes daily piece replacing cellseither because of random errors or because there are outside pressures placed on the replacement process that promote errors. Most of these mistakes are corrected by additional elegant systems or the error leads to the decease of the newly made cell, too some other normal new cell is produced. Sometimes a error is made, nevertheless, as well as is non corrected. Many uncorrected mistakes have got footling result on health, but if the error allows the newly made cell to split independent of the checks andbalances that command normal cell growth, that prison cell tin get to multiply inwards an uncontrolled mode. When this happens, a tumor (essentially a mass of abnormal cells) tin can develop.

Tumors autumn into 2 categories: at that place are benign (noncancerous) tumors in addition to malignant (cancerous) tumors. So what is the departure? The reply is that a benign tumorgrows only inward the tissue from which it arises. Benign tumors sometimes tin grow quite large or quickly in addition to effort severe symptoms, fifty-fifty expiry, although most do non. For representative, a fibroid tumor in a adult female’s uterus is a type of benign tumor. It can effort bleeding orhurting, but it volition never travel exterior the uterus too grow as a new tumor elsewhere. Fibroids, similar all benign tumors, lack the capacity to shed cells into the blood in addition to lymphatic arrangement, so they are unable to locomote to other places in the trunk and grow. Cancer, on the other manus, tin can shed cells that tin can locomote through the blood or lymphatic arrangement, landing inward tissuesdistant from the primary tumor in addition to growing into novel tumors inward these distant tissues. This process of spreading to distant tissues, called metastasis, is the defining characteristic of a cancerous or malignanttumor.

Benign tumor cells often facial expression relatively normal in appearance when examined under the microscope. Malignant or cancerous cells usually facial expression more abnormal in appearance when similarly viewed nether the microscope.

Cancer is a group of more than 100 unlike diseases, much like infectious diseases. Cancers are named past the tissues from which the firstly tumor arises. Hence, alung cancer that travels to the liver is non a liver cancer but is described aslung cancer metastatic to the liver, together with breast cancer that spreads to the encephalon is non described as a encephalon tumor but rather asbreast cancer metastatic to the brain. Each cancer is a unlike illness with dissimilar handling options and varying prognoses (probable outcomes or life expectancy). In fact, each private with cancer has a unique illness, in addition to the relative success or lack thereof of handling amidst patients with the same diagnosis may live real dissimilar. As aresultant, it is important to treat each someone with a diagnosis of cancer as an individual regardless of the type of cancer.

What is the colon, in addition to what does it do?

The colon too the rectum are the finalportions of the metro that extends from the mouth to the anus. Food enters the mouth where it is chewed in addition to so swallowed. It so travels through the esophagus in addition to into the tum. In the stomach, the food is earth into smaller particles in addition to then enters the modest intestine inward a carefully controlled way. In the minor intestine, the terminaldigestion of nutrient too absorption of the nutrients contained inward the food occurs. The food that is non digested together with absorbed enters the big intestine (colon) in addition to finally the rectum. The large intestine acts primarily as a storage facility for waste matter; yet, additional H2O, salts, together with somevitamins are further removed. In improver, some of the undigested food, for example, fiber, is digested past colonic bacteria in addition to some of the products of digestion are absorbed from the colon too into the torso. (It is estimated that 10% ofthe free energy derived from nutrient comes from these products of bacterial digestion inward the colon.) The remaining undigested nutrient, dying cells from the lining of the intestines, in addition to large numbers of bacteria are stored inwards the colon and then periodically passed into the rectum. Their arrival into the rectum initiates a bowel move that empties the coloniccontents from the torso as stool.

Although the large intestine is a subway system, it is structurally a complicated metro, more similar a steel-belted radial tire than a garden hose. The subway is comprised of 4 layers. The first off is an inner layer of cells that line thecavity through which the undigested in addition to digesting food travels, called the mucosa. The mucosa is attached to a sparse instant layer, the submucosa, that is attached itself to a layer of musculus, the muscularis. The entire metro is surrounded by fibrous (scar-like)tissue called the serosa. The most common cancers of the big intestine (the type called adenocarcinoma) arise from the mucosa, the inner layer of cells. These cells are exposed to toxins from nutrient too bacteria as good as mechanical clothing together with tear, too they are relatively turning over apace (dying off and beingness replaced). Mistakes (usually a series ofmistakes involving genes within the replacement cells) lead to abnormal cells as well as uncontrolled proliferation of the abnormal cells that give ascension to cancer. The rapid turnover allows for more mistakes to occur as compared with tissues that do not turn over so quickly (for example, liver tissue).

How long is the human colon?

The human big intestine (colon) is most 6 feet long.

Where is the colon located?

Most of the large intestine rests inside a cavity inwards theabdomen called the peritoneal cavity. Parts of the colon are able to move quite freely within the peritoneal cavity as the undigested food is passing through it. As the colon heads towards the rectum, it becomes fixed to the tissues behind the peritoneal cavity, an expanse called the retroperitoneum. The cease portion of the large intestine, the component that resides in the retroperitoneum, is the rectum. Unlike much of the relaxation of the colon, the rectum is fixed inwards position past the tissues that surroundings it.Because of its location, handling for rectal cancer often is unlike than treatment for cancer of the rest of the colon.

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What is colorectal cancer?

Cancers of the colon in addition to rectum (colorectal cancer) start when the physical process of the normal replacement of colon lining cells goes awry. Mistakes inwards prison cell partitioning occur often. For reasons that are poorlyunderstood, sometimes mistakes occur that escape our editing systems. When this occurs, these cells set about to split independently of the normal checks too balances that control growth. As these abnormal cells grow as well as split, they can Pb to growths within the colon called polyps. Polyps vary inward type, but many are precancerous tumors that grow slowover the course of instruction of years and do non spread. As polyps grow, additional genetic mutations farther destabilize the cells. When these precancerous tumors change administration (growing into the wall of the subway system rather than into the infinite in the heart of it) together with invade other layers of the large intestine (such as the submucosa or muscular layer), the precancerous polyp has go cancerous. In most cases this physical process is irksome, taking at to the lowest degree eight to 10 years to develop from those early aberrant cellsto a frank cancer. Colorectal cancer is typically an adenocarcinoma, a term that refers to a cancer that has formed in certain types of lining tissues inward the trunk.

Once a colorectal cancer forms, it begins to grow in two ways. First, the cancer tin grow locally as well as extend through the wall of the intestine and invade adjacent structures, making the mass (called the primary tumor) more of a job together with harder to remove. Local extension tin cause additional symptoms such ashurting or fullness, perforation of the colon, or blockages of the colon or nearby structures. Second, as the cancer grows it begins the physical process of metastasis, shedding thousands of cells a twenty-four hour period into the blood in addition to lymphatic system that tin campaign cancers to grade inward distant locations. Colorectal cancers most commonly spread first of all to locallymph nodes before traveling to distant organs. Once local lymph nodes are involved, spread to the liver, the abdominal cavity, in addition to the lung are the next most mutual destinations of metastatic spread.

Colorectal cancer is the third most mutual movement of cancer in the U.due south. inwards both men as well as women. It affects over 135,000 people annually,representing 8% of all cancers. About 4.3% of people will be diagnosed with colon or rectum cancer at some dot inwards their lives.

What are colon cancer risk factors too causes?

Health care professionals are sure that colorectal cancer is noncontagious (a someone cannot take hold of the illness from a cancer patient). Some people are more than probable to develop colorectal cancer than others. Factors that increment a soul’s risk of colorectal cancer include increasing historic period, African-American race, high fat intake, a family unit history of colorectal cancer together with polyps, the presence of polyps inwards the large intestine, together withinflammatory bowel diseases, primarily chronic ulcerative colitis.

Age

Increasing age is the principal risk ingredient for colorectal cancer. Around 90% of colorectal cancers arediagnosed after age 50.

Race

African Americans have a higher incidence of colorectal cancer than people of other races.

Diet in addition to colorectal cancer

Diets high inwards fatty have got been shown in numerous enquiry studies to predispose people to colorectal cancer. In countries with high colorectal cancer rates, the fat intake past the population is much higher than inward countries with low cancer rates. It is believed that the digestion of fatty that occurs in the small intestine toothe colon leads to the formation of cancer-causing chemicals (carcinogens). Likewise, enquiry studies also divulge that diets high inward vegetables together with high-fiber foods such as whole-grain breads together with cereals contain less fat that produces these carcinogens in addition to may counter the effects of the carcinogens. Both effects would aid cut back the risk ofcancer.

Colon polyps together with colorectal cancer

Research has shown that most colorectal cancers develop inward colorectal polyps. Therefore, removing benign (but precancerous) colorectal polyps can foreclose colorectal cancer. Precancerous colorectal polyps are most commonly called adenomatous polyps. They develop when chromosomal damage occurs inward cells of the inner lining of the colon. The harm produces abnormal cells, but the cells have got not yet developed the ability to spread, thehallmark of cancer. Instead, the growing tissue remains localized within the polyp. When chromosomal damage increases farther within the polyp, jail cell growth becomes uncontrolled, and the cells set about to spread, that is, they go cancer. Thus, colon polyps which are initially benign acquire additional chromosome damage to become cancerous.

Ulcerative colitis as well as colorectal cancer

Chroniculcerative colitis causes inflammation of the inner lining of the colon. Bowel cancer is a recognized complication of chronic ulcerative colitis. The risk for cancer begins to increment after 8 to 10 years of colitis. The risk of developing coloncancer in a patient with ulcerative colitis also is related to the location as well as the extent of his or her disease.

Patients at higher risk of cancer are those with a family unit history of colon cancer, a long duration of ulcerative colitis, extensive colon involvement with ulcerative colitis, and those with ulcerative colitis-associated liver affliction, sclerosing cholangitis.

Since the cancers associated with ulcerative colitis have a more favorable outcome when caught at an earlier stage, yearly examinations of the colon often are recommended after eight years of known extensive affliction. During these examinations, samples of tissue (biopsies) are taken to search for precancerous changes in the cells lining thecolon. When precancerous changes are found, removal of the entire colon may be necessary to preclude colon cancer.

Genetics and colorectal cancer

A soul’s genetic background is an of import component in colon cancer risk. Having a first off-grade relative with colorectal cancer, particularly if the cancer was diagnosed before the age of 55 years, roughly doubles the risk of developing the condition.

Even though a family history of colon cancer is an of import risk ingredient, a majority(lxxx%) of colon cancers occur sporadically in patients with no family history of colon cancer. Approximately 20% of cancers are associated with a family unit history of colon cancer.

Chromosomes comprise genetic data, and chromosomal damage causes genetic defects that lead to the formation of colon polyps in addition to subsequently colon cancer. In sporadic polyps too cancers (polyps and cancers that develop in the absence of family history), the chromosome damages are acquired (develop in a jail cell duringadult life). The damaged chromosomes can only live found in the polyps as well as the cancers that develop from that cell. But inwards hereditary colon cancer syndromes, the chromosomal defects are inherited at nascence in addition to are nowadays inward every prison cell in the body. Patients who have got inherited the hereditary colon cancer syndrome genes are at risk of developing colon polyps, commonly at immatureages, as well as are at rattling high risk of developing colon cancer early on inwards life; they also are at risk of developing cancers inwards other organs.

Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is ane hereditary colorectal cancer syndrome where the affected family unit members will develop countless numbers (hundreds, sometimes thousands) of colon polyps starting during their teens. Unlessthe status is detected and treated early (treatment involves removal of the colon), a mortal affected past FAP is almost sure to develop colon cancer from these polyps. Cancers almost for certain develop past the time a soul is in their 40s. These patients are also at risk of developing other cancers such as cancers inwards the thyroid gland, stomach, and the ampulla (part of the bile duct where it drains into the minor intestine from the liver) as good as benign tumors called desmoid tumors. FAParises from a mutation inwards a specific factor called the APC gene. The specific mutation can be identified inward most people with appropriate testing, in addition to such testing is recommended for individuals diagnosed with FAP as well as their family members.

Attenuated familial adenomatous polyposis (AFAP) is a milder version of FAP. Affected members develop fewer than 100 colon polyps. Nevertheless, they are still at real high risk of developing colon cancers at a immature historic period. They are also at riskof having gastric polyps together with duodenal polyps.

Hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer (also known as Lynch syndrome or HNPCC) is a hereditary colorectal cancer syndrome where affected family unit members tin can develop colon polyps and cancers, commonly in the right colon, inwards their 30s to 40s. Patients with HNPCC are also at risk of developinguterine cancer, breadbasket cancer, ovarian cancer, too cancers of the ureters (the tubes that connect the kidneys to the bladder), and the bile ducts. Ironically, it appears that while colon cancer occurs more oftentimes inwardpatients with HNPCC, these cancers may be more easily cured than “sporadic” colon cancers. The specific genetic abnormalities associated with HNPCC have got been identified, and patients too family members tin be tested to determine if HNPCC is present together with if family members acquit the abnormality in addition to are likely to develop cancer.

MYH polyposis syndrome is a late discovered hereditary colorectal cancer syndrome. Affected members typically develop 10 to 100 polyps at around xl years ofhistoric period together with are at high risk of developing colon cancer. Here, also, the genetic abnormality has been identified.

It is important to remember that the overwhelming bulk of colorectal cancers do not have got a single, identifiable chromosomal abnormality that tin can be looked for inwards relatives inward club to place individuals at risk for colorectal cancer.

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What are the signs together with symptoms of colon cancer?

Colorectal cancer-related symptoms are numerous as well as nonspecific. They include

• fatigue,
• weakness,
• shortness of breath,
• change inward bowel habits,
• narrow stools,
• diarrhea or constipation,
• ruby-red ornighttime blood inwards stool,
• weight loss,
• abdominal pain,
• cramps, or
• bloating.

Other conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome(spastic colon), ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s affliction, diverticulosis, together with peptic ulcer illness can have gotsymptoms that mimic bowel cancer.

Colorectal cancer tin be nowadays for several years before symptoms develop. Symptoms vary according to where inwards the large intestine the tumor is located. The right colon is wider as well as more flexible. It tin can fifty-fifty be called relatively spacious as compared to the ease of the colon. Cancers of the right colon tin can grow to big sizes before they campaign whatever abdominal symptoms.

• Typically, right-sided cancers effortiron deficiency anemia due to the ho-hum loss of blood over a long menstruation of time. Iron deficiencyanemia causes fatigue, weakness, together with shortness of breath.
• The left colon is narrower than the right colon. Therefore, cancers of the left colon are more likely to movement partial or complete bowel obstacle.

Cancerscausing partial bowel obstacle tin can cause symptoms of

• constipation,
• narrowed stool,
• diarrhea,
• abdominal pains,
• cramps, together with
• bloating.
• Bright ruddyblood inward the stool may also signal a growth near the end of the left colon or rectum.

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What tests tin be doneto notice as well as diagnose colon cancer?

When colon cancer is suspected, a colonoscopy is typically performed to confirm the diagnosis together with locate the tumor.

Colonoscopy is a process whereby a wellness aid professional person inserts a long, flexible viewing subway system into the rectum for the purpose of inspecting the inside of the entire colon. Colonoscopy is mostly considered more accurate thanbarium enema X-rays, especially inward detecting pocket-size polyps. If colon polyps are found, they usually are removed through thecolonoscope together with sent to the pathologist. The pathologist examines the polyps under the microscope to bank check for cancer. Colonoscopy is the best process to employment when cancer of the colon is suspected.While the majority of the polyps removed through colonoscopes are benign, many are precancerous. Removal of precancerous polyps prevents the hereafter development of colon cancer from these polyps.

Sigmoidoscopy is a procedure performed using a shorter flexible orbit to examine but the left colon and rectum. It is more than easily prepared for together with performed than a complete colonoscopy but has obvious limitations inward damage of non being long enough to assess both the right as well astransverse colons. Polyp removal in addition to cancer biopsy tin can live performed through the sigmoidoscope.

If cancerous growths are constitute during colonoscopy, minor tissue samples (biopsies) can be obtained too examined nether the microscope to make up one’s mind if the polyp is cancerous. If colon cancer is confirmed past a biopsy, staging examinations are performed to determine whether cancer has already spread to other organs. Since colorectal cancer tends to spread to thelungs in addition to the liver, staging tests usually include CT scans of the lungs, liver, and abdomen. Positron emission tomography (PET) scans, a newer try out that looks for the increased metabolic activeness thatis common inward cancerous tissue, also are employed ofttimes to facial expression for the spread of colon cancer to lymph nodes or other organs.

Sometimes, the wellness care professional person may obtain a “tumor mark” blood test called a carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) if at that place is a suspicion of cancer. CEA is a inwardness produced by some colon together with rectalcancer cells as good as past some other types of cancers. It is sometimes found inward high levels in patients with colorectal cancer, particularly when the affliction has spread. It tin can serve as a useful try out to follow if it is found to be elevated before the cancer is removed. However, not all patients with colorectal cancer volition have an elevated CEA fifty-fifty if their cancer has spread. (Some colorectal cancers don’t produce it.) Additionally, some patients without cancer can have got an elevated CEAblood prove. About fifteen% of smokers, for representative, will have got an elevated CEA without colon cancer. So the CEA is not used to diagnose colorectal cancer but rather to follow the effects of handling of colorectal cancer inward someone with a known history of the affliction because, again, inward some patients, the amount of cancerous tissue correlates with the flat ofCEA.

Staging is the physical process of determining how far a tumor has spread beyond its original location. Source: © 2005Terese Winslow, U.southward. Govt. has certain rights