Bowel Cancer Symptoms: The Early Signs

Bowel cancer is the third most common type of cancer and the second greatest cause of cancer deaths in the world. Bowel cancer may also be called colon cancer, colorectal cancer or large bowel cancer, and it affects the colon, rectum and appendix.

The actual cause of bowel cancer is not yet fully understood, but researchers have discovered that heredity comes into it. A family history of bowel cancer puts you in the high-risk category, and means you are more likely to also have the disease than those with no family history of it. It is also becoming a more common type of cancer in many countries.

It is very rare that young people get bowel cancer and females over the age of fifty are the most at risk. Most cases of bowel cancer occur in both men and women between the ages of sixty and eighty years of age. It is a cancer found in all parts of the world, but is more prevalent in places where the diet of the population is generally low in fiber and high in fat. This applies particularly to Europe, Australasia and the United States.

Most bowel cancers generally start out as adenomatous polyps, occurring on the lining of the colon or large intestine. These are normally benign but they can develop into cancerous growths if they are left untreated. From the lining of the colon, cancer cells can travel through the colon wall into the abdominal cavity if the cancer is not detected early and treated.

Often the first symptom of bowel cancer is drops of bright-red fresh blood after defecation. This symptom should be treated seriously, and a doctor should be consulted as soon as possible. As with all cancers, the earlier the cancer is diagnosed and treatment started, the better the chance of recovery.

Other bowel cancer symptoms include:

• Frequent abdominal pain
• Diarrhea
• Constipation
• Increased mucous around the stools
• Pain when defecating
• Bleeding from the anus
• Blood in the stool; either fresh or dried

If the cancer is not diagnosed from these symptoms, more advanced symptoms may appear, like:

• Black stools with the consistency of tar, referred to as melena
• Decreasing appetite
• Weight loss
• Bowel obstruction
• Severe abdominal pain
• Severe constipation
• Vomiting

Additional symptoms, that appear not to be related to a cancer of the bowel, include:

• Heart palpitations
• Skin pallor
• Unexplained fevers
• General fatigue
• Lack of energy

A doctor will generally perform a colonoscopy to confirm a suspected diagnosis of bowel cancer, during which a tiny camera is inserted into the colon to allow the doctor to see if there is any evidence of a tumor.

The treatment of bowel cancer may be surgery, if the cancer is localized in the colon lining, possibly followed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy, or a combination of both. If surgery is not an option, because the tumor has spread from inside the colon, then the treatment will be chemotherapy or radiation therapy.