Colorectal cancer, more commonly known as colon cancer, is a common form of cancer; It is the third most common type of cancer and the second most lethal. It is fairly common due to the numerous causes and contact with foreign substances. Cancer is the condition of where cells do not cease mitosis, and continue to duplicate in tumors. If the cancer cells do not metastasize, spread to other parts of the body, they are said to be benign. Benign tumors are not extremely harmful until they metastasize and become malignant.
Colorectal cancer can be located either in the rectum or colon. The stages range from I to IV, with I being the least advanced and harmful to IV being the worst, as it has metastasized. It can be cured if it is …show more content…
Familial adenomatous polyposis increases the risk of developing colon cancer to almost certain. The disorder causes a person to have thousands of polyps, causing from an early age anemia due to the loss of blood in the feces. Later on, the person will most likely develop cancer. Hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer is also called Lynch Syndrome. Lifetime risk is approximately 80%, it also increase risks of numerous other cancer in the digestive tract and …show more content…
Screening can be done by fecal occult blood test, sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy, and virtual colonoscopy. Colonoscopies are by far the most popular to diagnose with, as it is a lighted probe that can also remove polyps during the procedure. It is similar to a sigmmoidoscopy, although it only goes into the lower colon and can not remove polyps. Virtual colonoscopy is a noninvasive procedure that uses x-rays to find colon cancer. The effectiveness of it is getting better but is not at the level of a real colonoscopy. The fecal blood test less useful because it can find polyps but it can be an indicator of colon cancer. Genetic or hereditary testing will help find out if a person has a disorder linked to colon cancer or if they have a general