Cases of this cancer type are on the rise in people younger than age 50 despite screening methods to detect early stages of this disease. Today, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published that colorectal cancer is the leading cause of death from cancer in people at mid-age. Colorectal cancer used to be the fifth leading cause of cancer-related deaths, but it has risen to the first.
The reasons for the increase, according to the Cancer Research Institute, are lack of exercise and also consuming an abundance of processed foods and red meat.
“The steady rise in colorectal deaths under 50 is even more alarming compared to the dramatic declines for lung and breast, even as breast cancer incidence is climbing,” said Rebecca Siegel, MPH, senior scientific director, surveillance research at the American Cancer Society, and lead author of the report. “While we await answers for why colorectal cancer rates are up, lives can be saved now through symptom awareness and destigmatization, and more screening uptake, as three in four people under 50 are diagnosed with advanced disease.
Colorectal Screening Options
Colonoscopy remains the gold standard for early detection, and the screening age dropped from age 50 to age 45. The test not only detects cancer but also precancerous polyps, which can be removed during the screening. You’ll likely be put into a light twilight sedation, so you’ll have no memory of the procedure, no pain, and a short nap.
What prevents people from getting the test is the day before prep, where you are given a one-day diet of broth, other clear liquids, and laxatives. No solid food. It’s unpleasant, but worth it.
Other Tests To Screen for Colorectal Cancer
- An FDA-approved blood test called Shield, which, in a large study, detected 83 percent of colorectal cancer found during routine screenings.
- Virtual colonoscopy that uses X-rays to produce pictures of your colon. You will need to do the same prep as a regular colonoscopy, but no sedation. This might be good for people who don’t tolerate sedation very well.
- Home-based stool tests. There are at-home tests you can buy or get some your doctor to mail you and you mail back to a research facility. The downside is that this test can’t detect polyps, only blood in your stool.
If you go with one of these alternative tests and you get a positive result, meaning the test may have detected cancer, you’ll still need a standard colonoscopy to be certain. Colorectal cancer is preventable and very treatable when caught early.
