Sunday, June 12, 2011

Schedule Your Colonoscopy ASAP

There are some things in life you should be anal about.


CCS - Anal from Patrick Hachey on Vimeo.

The risk of getting colon or rectal cancer in your lifetime is 1 in 18.

This risk seems to be decreasing slightly as time passes. However, colon cancer is a risk for every individual. The risk of males and females is about equal. Similarly, the risk does not vary substantially among different ethnic groups in the United States. The risk of this disease does vary around the world, and it is felt that this is most likely due to difference in life style and, to some degree, genetic pre-dispositions. When foreign groups move to the United States, the life style and dietary changes tend to make the risks similar to that of other ethnic groups in the United States.

The greatest risk for developing cancer is after the age of 60. However, about 5% of colon and rectal cancers occur under the age of 40. Twenty percent of patients who develop colon and rectal cancer will have a family history of colon cancer. About 1% have an identified predisposition to colon cancer called familial polyposis or chronic ulcerative colitis.

The chance that a person will die of a colon and rectal cancer is about 1/3 the chance of getting the cancer. Increasingly, as tumors are identified at an earlier stage and phase, then we are able to cure these cancers. Colon cancer is the cause of death in about 3% of individuals who die each year in the United States. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States.

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