America’s #2 Cancer Killer
• Colorectal cancer is the number 2 cancer killer in the United States, yet it is one of the
most preventable types of cancer. Colorectal cancer is often curable when detected early.
Risk Factors
• Lifetime risk of colorectal cancer is roughly equal in men and women.
• Colorectal cancer is most common after age 50, but it can strike at
younger ages. The risk of developing colorectal cancer increases
with age.
Symptoms
Most early colorectal cancers produce no symptoms. This is why screening for colorectal
cancer is so important. Some possible symptoms, listed below, do not always indicate the
presence of colorectal cancer, but should prompt a visit with your physician and a check-up:
• New onset of abdominal pain
• Blood in or on the stool
• A change in stool caliber or shape
• A change in typical bowel habits, constipation, diarrhea
Colonoscopy: Preferred Screening Strategy
Colonoscopy is the preferred method of screening for
colorectal cancer. The American College of Gastroenterology
considers colonoscopy the “gold standard” for colorectal
screening because colonoscopy allows physicians to
look directly at the entire colon and to identify suspicious
growths. Colonoscopy is the only test that allows a
biopsy or removal of a polyp at the very same time
it is first identified.
Colorectal Screening for African Americans
African Americans are diagnosed with colorectal cancer at a younger age
than other ethnic groups, and African Americans with colorectal cancer have
decreased survival compared with other ethnic groups.
Physician experts from the American College of Gastroenterology in 2005
issued new recommendations to healthcare providers to begin colorectal
cancer screening in African Americans at age 45 rather than 50 years.
Data support
the recommendation
that African Americans should begin
screening at a younger age because of
the higher incidence of colorectal cancer
and a greater prevalence of proximal or
right-sided polyps and cancer in this
population.