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Colon cancer is, as its name suggests, a disease that affects the
colon. The colon is a tube shaped organ, located in the abdomen, that
starts at the end of the bowel and ends with the anus. It twists and
turns a lot, so its length is over 4 feet. The functions of the colon
are to digest the food, absorb the nutrient substances from it
(proteins and aminoacids), and to create the concentrated fecal
material, which is then stored and eliminated from the colon when the
time comes. The end of the colon is called rectum. The rectum and the
colon together form the large intestine.
Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in both the USA and
Europe, and colon cancer is the most dangerous cancer besides lung
cancer. It can be easily cured when it is in its early stages, but the
problem is that is rarely shows any signs and symptoms when the tumor
is isolated, so it's hard to detect it before it spreads. When it
reaches metastasis, or stage IV, the chances of survival drop under 10%
because in this phase it has already spread to at least one more organ.
It usually spreads to the liver first, and then to the lungs.
Colon cancer is a dangerous form of cancer that starts in the colon,
and then if nothing is done to treat it, it will start to spread. The
causes of colon cancer have not been discovered yet, but scientists are
researching its causes and new treatments that can help cure colon
cancer and metastatic colon cancer.
Colon cancer is a disease that affects the large intestine, an organ
that absorbs the nutrients from the food, and stores and eliminates the
fecal material. The large intestine has two parts, the colon and the
rectum. Colon cancer occurs when tumors appear inside the colon and
rectum. These tumors can be malignant, in which case they do not
present any danger and they can be removed by a simple surgery, and
beningn. Beningn tumors are cancerous tumors that can spread and cause
life-threatening complications. If you have been diagnosed with a
beningn colon tumor you must begin the colon cancer treatment as soon
as possible because if the illness is left untreated it can spread to
other organs such as the liver and the lungs.
A new study shows that a type of antidepressant could decrease the risk
of developing colorectal cancer. Still, people with high risk shouldn't
start taking them yet. People should wait until solid evidence that
this is true will be revealed and just after that they should go to a
doctor and ask for the right medicine.
A very new study states that there is a correlation between smaller
colon cancer rates and the use of vitamins A,E,C calcium, potassium and
folic acid. The study has shown that long-term vitamins use could
decrease the risk of colon cancer by 57 percent.
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers in the United
States, affecting over 150,000 men and women every year. But there is
hopeful news for those who are concerned about colorectal cancer.
Progress has been made recently in the search for a treatment to cure
colon cancer. On October 6, 2006, The Journal of Biological Chemistry
published a study about this and the results were astounding. They
found out a particular molecule that is most probably one of the major
cause of colon cancer worldwide. This particular molecule is termed as
the C-Terminal Binding Protein or (CTBP).
Colon cancer is one the most prevalent forms of cancer among the
American population. Although inappropriate diet and unhealthy
lifestyle considerably increase the risks of developing colon cancer,
many forms of the disease occur on the premises of underlying genetic
predispositions. Statistics reveal that more than 5 percent of colon
cancers worldwide are caused solely by genetic dysfunctions and
physiologic abnormalities. Depending on their underlying cause, colon
cancers can be either acquired (sporadic colon cancers), or
genetically-inherited.
Cancer survivor Verna Cox knows firsthand that colorectal cancer (CRC)
discriminates. At the age of 49, Cox never suspected that a series of
tests for stomach pain and discomfort would result in a stage III colon
cancer diagnosis. Like so many other African-American women today,
Verna was completely unaware that her race and gender put her at
greatest risk for the disease.
In the fall of 2003, Bridget Beranek, a 44-year-old wife and mother of
two young girls, was gearing up for a busy holiday season filled with
family functions, parties and shopping. So when she began to lose her
appetite and energy, Bridget initially chalked it up to holiday stress.
When a doctor wants to evaluate the progress of colon cancer of one of
his patients he or she uses a method called Staging. This method is
about finding out to what extent the tumor (colon cancer) has spread to
the other regions of the patients body. Once the doctors figured out in
what stage the colon cancer is, they will develop the best course of
action or treatment.
At this point in time the system that is most commonly used for the
staging process of colon cancer is called the American Joint Committee
on Cancer's (AJCC) TNM staging system. Simply put this system used for
staging places the patients into one of four stages.
Colon cancer patients who are 65 and older may benefit from a
caregiver's involvement, and caregivers may ultimately have a major
impact on patients' disease management, according to a survey of
oncologists commissioned by the Alliance for Aging Research.
Colon cancer is a major illness and one that can cause life altering
effects. In fact, this form of cancer is one of the most common in the
nation. Most colon cancer patients suffer from polyps, which are
abnormal cells that form clusters. When normal cells begin to
transform, a potential problem arises. As time progresses, these
growths get bigger and can lead to the development of cancer. A vast
majority of sufferers have a family history with the disease.
Colon
cancer occurs in the large intestine or the large bowel and is a very
common kind of cancer, second only to lung cancer in occurrence. The
risk of colon cancer is higher in certain groups and ethnicities, as
well as in people living in Western industrialized countries. The
positive side is that colon cancer also has a very high rate of cure
and survival.
One 6-letter word that smacks fear into the hearts and minds of many
people in this day and age is the word ‘Cancer’. I would venture to say
that this fear is most likely the result of a lack of knowledge of the
disease. If you fall into that category, then hopefully the information
that you receive here will put you at ease, as well as inspire you to
find out more from the vast storehouse of information that is available.
There is good news for those concerned about colon cancer. Physicians
know that colon cancer screening saves lives. Yet an estimated 148,000
Americans, both women and men, are diagnosed with colorectal cancer
each year, and every year approximately 55,000 will die-the nation's
second deadliest cancer. Yet, it's believed most of these deaths could
be prevented through proper screening.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related
deaths in the United States for both women and men. This disease
surpasses both breast and prostate cancer in mortality, second only to
lung cancer in the number of cancer deaths. Despite the fact that it is
highly preventable, it is estimated that 148,610 new cases of
colorectal cancer will be diagnosed and 55,170 people will die from the
disease in 2006. However, when detected and treated early, colorectal
cancer has a five-year survival rate of greater than 90 percent. For
that reason, routine screening is vital in the prevention and detection
of this deadly disease.
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