(WJAR) — Every year, more than 150,000 men and women are diagnosed with colorectal cancer.
While cases for those over 50 are going down, it’s trending up for those who are younger.
“Don’t ignore symptoms. Bring them up to your doctor. Just don’t dismiss them,” said 33-year-old Jesse Cole, a Brown Surgical Associates patient who speaks from experience. “I’ve always felt I was prone to hemorrhoids you know. I had some bleeding going on. What ended up happening was over the summer I had some bleeding and it was different. It didn’t stop.”
Since rectal bleeding is the number one symptom of colon cancer, Jesse’s GI doctor recommended he get a colonoscopy, which confirmed their fears.
BSA’s Dr. Steven Schechter removed the cancer. However, since it had already spread to a lymph node, Jesse needed to undergo multiple rounds of chemotherapy.
While there’s no clear reason why the disease is affecting people at an increasingly younger age, Dr. Schechter told Channel 10’s Barbara Morse that it’s important to know about your family history.
“What about mom and dad, grandparents, siblings?” Dr. Schechter said.
Screening for colorectal cancer is recommended starting at 45, and 40 if you’re African American.
And for those who are diagnosed and have children, it’s recommended they be screened ten years before your age at diagnosis.
