One should watch out for any polyps or any suspected growth before they turn cancerous. Here are some warning signs of colon cancer you shouldn’t ignore.
Colorectal cancer, commonly known as colon cancer, happens when an abnormal growth called polyp or tumour in colon or rectum turns cancerous. The colon is your large intestine or large bowel. Over a past few decades, colorectal cancer is increasingly becoming common in even young due to sedentary lifestyle and faulty food habits. Five years back, colorectal cancer used to happen to two out of 1 lakh people, but today it has doubled to four. Two decades ago, colorectal cancer was the seventh most common cancer to affect Indians, but today it’s the third or fourth most common cancer. The exponential rise in the number of instances can be attributed to several factors.
Signs of colorectal cancer
“The most common sign of a polyp or tumour is a change in one’s motion; if a person finds themselves suddenly needing to use the restroom four or five times a day as opposed to once daily in the past and if the individual does not feel relieved following a bowel movement, it may be an indication of a polyp or tumour. Apart from the change in motion, the other common symptoms that indicate a polyp or tumour are stomach ache, rectal bleeding and anaemia,” says Dr Manoj Mulchandani, Consultant, General Laparoscopic and Robotic Colorectal Surgeon at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, Mumbai.
Colorectal cancer: Who is at risk
Both genetic and lifestyle factors are at play when it comes to assessing the risk of colorectal cancer.
“If a member of your immediate family has had this cancer diagnosed before the age of 40 or 50, you may be at high risk and should get a colonoscopy around five years before you reach the age at which your relative was diagnosed. Following that, you ought to undergo a colonoscopy every three to five years.
Additionally, the other risk factors contributing to the increased incidence of colorectal cancer are obesity, alcohol, smoking, unhealthy lifestyle, and unbalanced diet,” says Dr Mulchandani.
Foods that can put you at risk of colorectal cancer
If you frequently eat outside food or snack on processed food and meat, giving high-fibre diet a miss, you are more at risk of colorectal cancer than those who swear by homemade meals.
“There is a strong correlation between dietary habits and colorectal cancer. Western countries have higher rates of colorectal cancer due to the consumption of high starch and carbohydrate foods, processed sugar and meat, and low-fibre diets. These foods contain certain ingredients that alter the gut milieu or good bacterial environment in general. This results in constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, and other gastrointestinal complications adding to the risk of colorectal cancer,” says Dr Ganesh Nagarajan, Director – Hepato-Pancreatic-Biliary Surgery & Gastrointestinal Oncology, Nanavati Max Institute of Cancer Care.
“Colorectal cancer cases are lower in rural India, as compared to urban areas, which are experiencing a rapid increase in cases due to westernised dietary choices and lifestyle. Promoting indigenous foods and homecooked meals is essential to preventing colorectal cancer in India,” says Dr Nagarajan.
Early detection can prevent colon cancer
One should watch out for any polyps or any suspected growth before they turn cancerous.
“There are various sorts of polyps, and unless they are removed, one won’t know which type they are. Some are precancerous lesions that can develop into colon cancer. Colon cancer can be avoided if polyps are found and removed before this occurs. These procedures are minimally invasive, and polyps are removed endoscopically, laparoscopically, or by robotic surgery, which shortens the number of time patients must stay in the hospital. You might require surgery to have the polyp removed from your colon if it turns out to be cancerous (colostomy). But these days, only a very small proportion of people need a bag or stoma,” says Dr Mulchandani.
