Colon Cancer or Colorectal Cancer begins when a cancerous tumor grows in the lining of the colon, which is a part of large-intestine of a human body. This cancerous tumor can spread to other parts of the body. This article will tell you about symptoms, causes, and treatments of Colon Cancer.
What Is Colon Cancer?
When we eat food, the food is digested in the mouth and small intestine and undigested food enters the large intestine. Colon or large-intestine of a human body stores waste. The length of the human colon is about 6 feet. Colon Cancer is the growth of malignant (cancerous) tumor in the colon.
Colon Cancer Facts:
- According to the American Cancer Society, 1 in 23 women and 1 man out of 21 men in U.S.A develop Colon Cancer.
- About 135,000 cases of Colon Cancer were diagnosed in 2017 in the U.S.
Stages of Colon Cancer:
Staging describes the signs and symptoms of Colon Cancer and how much it spreads. In order to find out the colon cancer stages, doctors apply diagnostic tests. With the end of tests, staging is complete.
Stage 0: The cancer cells are in the inner lining or in the mucosa of the colon.
Stage I: The cancer cells spread to the inner layer of the colon.
Stage II: In this stage, the cancer cells have spread beyond mucosa and submucosa of the colon. This stage can be divided into stage IIA, IIB and IIC.
Stage IIA: Cancer has spread to the wall of the colon and has not grown through the nearby lymph nodes.
Signs & Symptoms: Blood in stool, constipation and diarrhea, and bowel inconsistency.
Stage IIB: Cancer has spread to the visceral peritoneum and has not grown through the nearby lymph nodes.
Signs & Symptoms: Blood in stool, constipation and diarrhea, narrowing of stool and bowel inconsistency.
Stage IIC: Cancer has grown through the wall of the colon and nearby structures, but not to the nearby lymph nodes.
Signs & Symptoms: Blood in stool, constipation and diarrhea, narrowing of stool and bowel inconsistency.
Stage III: Stage III can be divided into three parts-Stage IIIA, Stage IIIB, and Stage IIIC.
Stage IIIA: The tumor has spread to the muscular layers of the colon and nearby lymph nodes.
Signs and Symptoms: blood in stool, constipation or diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
Stage IIIB: Cancer has spread through the outermost layers of the colon and enters the visceral peritoneum. The tumor has spread up to 1-3 lymph nodes.
Signs and Symptoms: blood in stool, constipation or diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
Stage IIIC: In this stage, the tumor has spread beyond the muscular layers and up to 4 and more nearby lymph nodes.
Signs and Symptoms: blood in stool, constipation or diarrhea, abdominal pain, and unexplained anemia.
Stage IV: Stage IV can be divided into IVA and IVB.
Stage IVA: In this stage, cancer spreads to the liver or lungs.
Signs and Symptoms: blood in stool, constipation or diarrhea, abdominal pain,unexplained anemia, and unexplained weight loss.
Stage IVB: In this stage, the cancer cells spread to the distant organs. This is the most advanced stage.
Signs and Symptoms: blood in stool, constipation or diarrhea, abdominal pain,unexplained anemia, unexplained weight loss and vomiting.
Signs and Symptoms of Colon Cancer:
In the early stages of colon cancer, people may not find any symptoms. In advanced stages, symptoms appear but they vary on the basis of cancer size and location in the large intestine. The signs and symptoms have been discussed below.
- If you suffer from diarrhea or constipation
- If you find blood in your stool
- If you feel abdominal pain or discomfort
- If you feel fatigue or extreme weakness
- If you lose your weight but you don,t know why you are losing your weight.
What Causes Colon Cancer:
The reasons behind colon cancer are not clear in most cases. Yet, doctors have pointed out few causes, which include the following.
- Increasing age
- Intake of high fat
- Presence of polyps in the large intestine
- Inherited gene mutations
- Bowel diseases which are inflammatory
- Chronic colitis
How to Prevent Colon Cancer:
Colon Cancer can be prevented, i.e., it is preventable cancer. How? Let’s discuss.
Natural Treatments:
Try to eat less red meat. More garlic and more plant antioxidants will reduce the risk of colon cancer dramatically. Bear in mind, colon cancer is related to diet. So change in diet will help you to stay away from colon cancer. In addition, use of olive oil, drinking of Ginseng tea and intake of Omega-3 oils are also helpful.
Medical Treatments:
Medical treatment decisions of patients with colon cancer depend on few factors like their other medical conditions, overall health, other medications and their nutritional status. A multidisciplinary team including a surgeon, radiation oncologist, medical oncologist and gastroenterologist is needed to treat a patient with colon cancer. Different types of medical treatments are surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and targeted therapy. A surgical oncologist treats cancer using surgery, which has side-effects like pain, constipation etc. Doctors use high-energy x-rays to cure colon cancer. This process is called radiation therapy. In order to destroy cancer cells, when doctors use medications, then the process is called chemotherapy. Targeted therapy targets cancer’s proteins, specific genes. Whatever you will choose, you should consult with your doctor.
Risk Factors of Colon Cancer:
Risk factors for colon cancer have been discussed below:
- People older than 50 have the risk of growing cancer cells in the colon
- Chronic inflammatory intestinal diseases
- Intake of high-fat, low-fiber
- If your parents have colon cancer
- If you are inactive
- People with diabetes
- People with obesity
- People who smoke
- People who take alcohol
- Radiation therapy
What Does Colon Cancer Pain Feel Like:
The abdominal pain in colon cancer is rare.
How Long Can You Live With Stage 4 Colon Cancer:
Not even doctor can exactly tell you how long you can live with stage 4 colon cancer.
But a survey has revealed that 11% of people with stage 4 colon cancer are alive for 5 years after colon cancer is diagnosed.
Average Age For Colon Cancer:
People older than 50 years have a risk of growing the cancer cells in the colon.
What Is The Survival Rate For Colon Cancer:
Survival Rate Stage Percentage
5 1 92%
5 2 63%
5 3 53%
5 4 11%
We always know prevention is better than cure. If your colon cancer is detected, treat it with the help the doctor as early as possible. The best way is to take steps to avoid the disease. How? As mentioned earlier, change your food habit and reduce high intake of fat. Colon cancer is related to your diet. But if you have already developed colon cancer cells, don’t be panic. Just consult with your doctor and treat it.
