Early, regular screening best for detecting cancer

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March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. Colorectal cancer - cancer of the colon and rectum - is the third most common cancer found in men and woman and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. The latter is a sad statistic, when you consider that colorectal cancer is preventable and, when detected early, up to 90 percent curable. Lack of knowledge about symptoms, common risks factors and embarrassment often cause this disease to be detected at a more advanced stage when it is harder to treat and cure.

In honor of this month and as a survivor of this disease, I would like to share some common risk factors and symptoms.

Known risk factors:

* Men and women age 50 and over

* Tobacco users

* Heavy use of alcohol

* People who are sedentary or obese

* Diet high in fat, especially from animal sources

* People with a personal or family history of colorectal cancer or benign (non-cancerous) polyps

* People with a personal or family history of inflammatory bowel disease, such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease.

* People with inherited genetic factors.

Risk factors are guidelines of general trends. They are not infallible, which is why it is important to be aware of common symptoms such as:

* Change in bowel habits or stools that are narrower than normal

* Diarrhea, constipation or feeling that bowel does not empty completely

* Vomiting

* Unexplained weight loss

* Constant fatigue

* Rectal bleeding or blood in stool

* Abdominal discomfort - gas, bloating, fullness, cramps

* Unexplained anemia

* The most common symptom of colon cancer is no symptom.

If you have experienced any of these symptoms for more than a few days, please quit reading and make an appointment with a doctor - now.

Despite the widespread availability of highly effective screening tests, screening compliance falls far short of those for other cancers. Many people are unaware the once they turn 50, they should be screened annually for colorectal cancers. Men or women who have a personal or family history of colorectal cancer or polyps or a personal history of inflammatory bowel disease might need to be screened before age 50. In addition, women with a personal or family history of ovarian, endometrial or breast cancer should consider screening at an earlier age for colorectal cancer. Your doctor may recommend such screening tests as the fecal-occult blood test, flexible sigmoidoscopy or barium x-ray but the gold standard is the colonoscopy.

This is a visual examination of the rectum and entire colon which can be performed in a hospital or clinic. If polyps (small grape-like, pre-cancerous growths on the lining of the colon or rectum) are found, they can be removed during this procedure.

Patients may be fully conscious or under anesthesia for this test. The thought of someone exploring "that" area may give you a moment's pause, but a moment of discomfort or embarrassment is worth the peace of mind you will have knowing that you do not have colorectal cancer.

I was "lucky" that a local gastroenterologist, Dr. Rosann Schwartz, looked at a 31-year-old with no risk factors and a little intermittent blood from a "probable" hemorrhoid and said, "we'd better go in and check it out." I didn't want to spend my vacation drinking bowel cleanser and doing a colonoscopy, but her caution saved my life.

She discovered a lemon sized "growth" in the rectal sigmoid area which had broken through the colon wall and spread to my liver. Luckily for me you can live without a foot of your colon and a lobe of your liver! I endured eight months of chemotherapy and 28 days of radiation. If my cancer had been found at the polyp stage or even at the first stage of cancerous growth, it's likely that the most I might have needed was a snip of the polyp or surgery to remove the growth. When cancer progresses, as mine did to stage IV, there's not much you can do but hope, pray and take a lot of expensive drugs.

I didn't know the symptoms and never considered the possibility that I could get terminal rectal sigmoid cancer as a healthy 31-year-old. I don't want anyone to have to go through this if it's possible to avoid it so, please, do me (and your family and loved ones) a favor, get screened.

P.S. As it turns out, a diagnosis of colon cancer may be scary but it's not necessarily a death sentence. Despite my "terminal" diagnosis, I celebrated my 10-year anniversary this fall. I have been cancer-free and healthy since the end of my treatment.

For more information: American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org; Colon Cancer Alliance, www.ccalliance.org; National Colorectal Research Alliance, www.eifoundation.org/national/nccra/splash; National Colorectal Cancer month, www.preventcancer.org/colorectal



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