Updated:
Keep
The Colorectal cancer (the one that begins in the colon or in its final part, the rectum) is the most common malignant tumor in Spain, if we add both sexes. And the second that causes more deaths, behind lung cancer. Every year, in our country, are diagnosed 44,000 new cases. Age, family history and inflammatory bowel diseases are risk factors, but the appearance of this disease is also closely linked to lifestyle.
The campaigns of fecal occult blood screening to detect it early are aimed at people of between 50 and 69 years oldthe strip that accumulates the most cases, but oncologists are witnessing with concern an increase in diagnoses in under that age.
In addition, being young patients, it is usually diagnosed in advanced stages due to low clinical suspicion. “It’s more aggressive because no one expects it and it is diagnosed later. It also seems that there are molecular alterations other than cancer that appear in older people that give it greater aggressiveness, “says Dr. Alfredo Carrato, an expert from the Digestive Tumors Treatment Group (TTD) and head of Medical Oncology at the Ramón y Cajal Hospital in Madrid.
This is the case of Francisco Javier Muñoz who a decade ago, when he was 48 years old, was surprised by rectal cancer. Young and with no family history that made him suspicious, he spent time until he consulted a specialist for the discomfort he noticed. “Occasionally I saw blood in the bathroom and I felt itching, but I put it down to a hemorrhoid. I had discomfort for a day or two and it would go away », she recalls. But the symptoms became more common and tenesmus appeared, a very typical symptom of this type of tumor for which continually feel the urge to defecatealthough the intestine is already empty.
The colonoscopy confirmed the suspicions: stage IV rectal cancer. She had to undergo chemotherapy and surgery to remove her rectum. A year and a half later he had a relapse due to liver metastasis, something predictable since when the cancer was detected it was very advanced. They removed a section of his liver. Since then, with check-ups every six months, he has not had any more scares. “I lead a practically normal life,” says this Castilian from León who participates in the workshops of the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC).
From his experience, he recommends, in case of any symptoms, go directly to the doctor and not let it go. “If I had gone a few months earlier, the tumor would not have spread,” he points out. And in the corresponding age range, undergo fecal occult blood screening, a simple and non-invasive test what reduces incidence and mortality of this tumor in the target population to which it is directed. “I have acquaintances who have detected it in time there,” says Muñoz.
“Screening campaigns are very important because we have the advantage that this type of cancer develops over a long period of time. At first, the cells that get out of control form polyps that, if not removed, can become adenomas and later a tumor. If I do the screening and occult blood comes out in the stool, a colonoscopy is done. If you have a colonoscopy, most of the time it is a polyp or adenoma that bleeds. It is removed and does not become malignant. Even in tumors without symptoms, at an early stage, heals over 90%», says Dr. Enrique Aranda, president of the Digestive Tumors Treatment Group (TTD) and head of the Medical Oncology Service at the Reina Sofía University Hospital in Córdoba.
Recent studies from large European registries indicate that colorectal cancer rates have increased significantly in patients aged 20 to 49 years during the last 25 years, mainly due to an increase in distal colon and rectal cancer. In particular, the increase in rectal cancer rates has been 1.8% per year from 1990 to 2016, and similar trends are observed in the United States, Australia, and countries in Asia.
For this reason, in the US, the American Cancer Society recommends advancing the age of starting screening tests in the general population (without personal or family history or predisposing diseases) at 45 years old. A recommendation shared by experts from the Digestive Tumors Treatment Group (TTD) consulted by ABC.
“We do not know exactly the reason for this increase in cases in younger people, but last year in the US, 400 specialists met to address this issue. It does not seem that it is due to a genetic cause but rather that it is something multifactorial that has more to do with what we eat, drink and breathe and with the fact that we do less physical exercise”, explains Dr. Aranda.
Prevention
For reduce the chances of getting colon cancerit is advisable to carry a diet “rich in fruits and vegetables, calcium, vitamin D, fiber and polyphenols from olive oil, tea and cocoa, which are antioxidants and anti-inflammatory,” says Dr. Alfredo Carrato. As well exercise, avoid being overweight, tobacco and alcohol. In the opinion of this expert, the current rhythm of life that we lead in Western societies has a lot to do with the high prevalence of colon cancer: “The stress low physical activity and also the western diet, which is characterized by eating more red and processed meat, and sugars, influences. All these things are influencing from childhood or adolescence until colon cancer appears. There is an interval of 30-40 years from when the lifestyle begins to be distorted until the cancer appears ». And he adds another factor that we should control: avoid taking antibiotics when they are not strictly necessary because they cause an imbalance in the microbiota intestinal that increases the risk of colon cancer.
Regarding the warning symptomsyou should always check when they are detected changes in heart ratetinal in the last month (constipation or diarrhea), abdominal pain, bleeding, tenesmo, tiredness, anemia and weight loss. “In the face of any suspicion, it is better to arrive early than a month late,” concludes Dr. Aranda.
See them
comments