Colon cancer in adults younger than 50 continues to rise, but numbers may decline if young people don’t delay in seeing a doctor if they experience the symptoms of colon cancer.

What Is Young-Onset Colon Cancer?

Colon cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for men younger than 50 and the second deadliest cancer for women. The American Cancer Society estimates doctors will diagnose about 106,590 new cases of colon cancer and 46,220 new cases of rectal cancer this year.

Overall incidence of colon cancer is dropping because more people are getting screened and making healthy lifestyle changes. However, colorectal cancer incidence in adults younger than 55 has been increasing by one or two percent since the 1990s.

Young-onset colorectal cancer refers to cancers of the colon and rectum in adults younger than 50. Since these cancers are often diagnosed later, they tend to be more aggressive.

Young Adults Share Common Colon Cancer Symptoms

A new study in JAMA Network Open outlined the symptoms of colorectal cancer in young people. The journal published an analysis of 80 studies involving almost 25 million people younger than 50. The study found that young adults often share similar colon cancer symptoms. Blood in the stool was a symptom in 45 percent of cases, followed by abdominal cramps (40 percent) and changes in bowel habits (27 percent).

Diagnosis often took longer in younger patients.

“Time from sign or symptom presentation to early onset colorectal cancer diagnosis was often between 4 and 6 months,” wrote the research team, led by Joshua Demb, a graduate student at the University of California, San Diego.

Young People Often Delay Seeking GI Treatment

Young people are more likely to ignore colon cancer warning signs and put off seeing a doctor. They may think they are too young to develop cancer or they might worry about having sufficient medical coverage.

Even when young people go to the doctor, “patients and clinicians alike may downplay symptom severity and fail to recognize key red flags and clinical cues that should trigger suspicion of colorectal cancer, said Demb and his team.

Never Ignore Blood in the Stool

Because blood in the stool is the most common warning sign, you should always consider it a red flag. According to the research, individuals younger than 50 with blood in their stool have a fivefold increase in the risk of developing colon cancer compared to those without this symptom.

Bloody stool does not always indicate cancer. Hemorrhoids are a common condition that can also cause bloody stool. About 89 percent of Americans will develop hemorrhoids at some point in their lives.

One-third of Americans Are Overdue for a Colon Cancer Screening

Because young-onset colon cancer incidence continues to rise, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force lowered the screening age from 50 to 45.

Despite this effort, 80 percent of adults between 45 and 49 are not getting screened, and 33 percent of all eligible Americans are not getting screened for colorectal cancer.

Procrastinating can be dangerous when it comes to colon cancer. Research indicates that a higher percentage of young people are diagnosed with advanced stages of colon cancer, ranging from 58 to 89 percent, compared to older patients with rates of 30 to 63 percent.

Know the Other Symptoms and Your Risk of Colorectal Cancer

Besides blood in the stool, abdominal pain and bowel changes, you should be aware of other common symptoms of colon cancer. These include fatigue, weakness, nausea, vomiting and unexplained weight loss.

More than 50 percent of colon cancers in the United States are linked to poor lifestyle choices that people can alter, such as the following:

• Lack of exercise
• Being overweight or obese
• Alcohol use
• Smoking and tobacco use
• Eating a diet high in processed meat or red meat
• Consuming a low-fiber diet

You cannot reverse all risk factors. A family history of colon cancer or inherited syndromes like Lynch syndrome, familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), chronic inflammatory bowel diseases such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, and type II diabetes cannot be reversed. However, you can manage your symptoms by being under a doctor’s care. If you have a higher chance of developing colon cancer, you might require screening before reaching 45 years old.

Visit Your Gastroenterologist for Prevention and Early Detection

Screening can prevent colorectal cancer by detecting and removing precancerous polyps so they cannot turn into cancer. Regular screening can also diagnose cancer at an early stage when it is more treatable.

Colonoscopy is the most comprehensive colon cancer screening because it allows your doctor to inspect the entire colon and remove polyps during the procedure. There are other screening methods that are less invasive, like stool tests that can detect blood or other abnormalities. Talk to your doctor about what type of test is best for you.