Clinical guidelines recommendcolon cancerscreening begin atage45 for people at average risk.
Screening should begin sooner for anyone who has a family history or other risk factors.
One method of screening, colonoscopy, can also serve as a diagnostic test if cancer is present.
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Your practitioner will talk through the risk factors that might be applicable to you, such as family history.
The practitioner will also talk to you about any symptoms you might be experiencing.
Your healthcare provider will examine your abdominal area to check for masses or enlarged organs.
Get our printable guide for your next doctor’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.
Get our printable guide for your next doctor’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.
A diagnostic colonoscopy is the most accurate test for diagnosing colon cancer.
you’re free to watch on a video monitor as the camera is threaded through your rectum andcolon.
Illustration by Verywell
If you’re thinking about how unpleasant that must be, take heartyou’re sedated during the procedure.
A pathologist can look at the sample with a microscope to see if cancer cells are present.
Results of these tests can help oncologists (cancer doctors) determine what treatments may work best.
After the cancer has been staged, a treatment plan can then be devised.
Stage 0 cancer has not grown beyond the mucosa.
Dealing with a diagnosis of stage 4 cancer can be a quite challenging process, both physically and mentally.
For most people, stage 4 colon cancer is not curable, but there are usually treatment options available.
Survival Rate
Colon cancer survival rates hinge greatly on the stage of the disease.
After the five-year mark, it may become less likely for cancer to return.
Some research suggests that people need to be followed closely for up to 10 years after diagnosis.
This longer follow-up is to ensure that anycancer recurrencesare caught early.
What Does “Five-Year Survival” Mean?
A five-year survival rate can never predict what will happen in any individual case.
Colon cancer treatments have changed and continue to change very quickly, which can improve outcomes.
Some treatments that are used now, such astargeted therapies, weren’t available five years ago.
This means that the five-year survival rates will likely look worse than what your five-year survival rate actually is.
Be sure to discuss what you learn about five-year survival rates with your healthcare provider.
They can help you understand how this information might apply to your specific situation.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Abdominal spasms and cramping are common in irritable bowel syndrome.
Often, it causes nausea and/or vomiting and a loss of appetite.
Diverticulitis
Diverticulitisrefers to inflammation of colon diverticulum (a pouch located in the colon wall).
With diverticulitis, pain is often sudden, constant, and present in the left lower abdomen.
Other associated symptoms include constipation, loss of appetite, nausea and/or vomiting.
This condition may cause diarrhea in addition to abdominal pain and a fever.
A tissue biopsy can be obtained during one of these invasive diagnostic procedures.
Imaging, such as CT colography, may detect growths.
It may be used when someone can’t tolerate a traditional colonoscopy or as part of the diagnostic process.
If a CT colography reveals the presence of polyps, they will need to be removed via a colonoscopy.
Ultrasound is mainly used to see if colon cancer has spread.
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