Guest post by Gina Sam, MD, MPH, Director of the Gastrointestinal Motility Center at The Mount Sinai Hospital
In the United States, colorectal cancer, or colon cancer, is the third most common cancer in both men and women and is the second leading cancer killer among Americans. Colorectal cancer affects both men and women and is often found in people age of 50 or older. It is considered a preventable disease and if it is detected early enough it is treatable, which is why routine colonoscopies help lower your risk of developing colorectal cancer.
What are the risk factors for colorectal cancer?
Your risk for colorectal cancer increases after age 50, if you have a family history of colon cancer or colon polyps, if you have inflammatory bowel disease including Crohn’s disease or Ultcerative Colitis, or if you have a genetic syndrome such as Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP) or Hereditary Non-Polyposis Colorectal Cancer (Lynch Syndrome).
Additionally, there are several lifestyle choices that can increase your risk including being overweight or obese, smoking tobacco and having a diet that is high in red meat and low in fruits and vegetables.
What are the signs of colorectal cancer?
The symptoms of colorectal cancer include blood in your stool, a change in stool pattern, anemia, weakness, weight loss, changes in appetite and abdominal pain.
What can you do to prevent Colorectal Cancer?
There are several lifestyle changes you can make to decrease your risk of developing colorectal cancer, like maintaining a healthy weight, quit smoking, cutting back on red meat and increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables in your diet.
The most effective and important step to preventing colorectal cancer is your first colonoscopy. At age 50, you should have your first colonoscopy screening. During this procedure, your gastroenterologist may remove polyps from your rectum or colon. Polyps are lesions that have the potential to grow into cancerous tumors. Removing benign polyps during a routine colonoscopy decreases your risk of developing colorectal cancer. Depending on the number of polyps you have, your doctor may ask you to repeat a colonoscopy in either three, five or 10 years.