How Do You Know You Have Bowel Cancer

Expert reviewer, Dr Alistair McNair, Consultant Gastroenterologist
Next review due October 2023

Bowel cancer is the name for any cancer that starts in your big bowel (colon) or back passage (rectum). Other names for bowel cancers include colon cancer, rectal cancer and colorectal cancer.

It's one of the most common types of cancer in the UK; more than xl,000 people get bowel cancer each year.

Most bowel cancer

In bowel cancer, cells in your big bowel (colon) or dorsum passage (rectum) start growing out of control. Nearly bowel cancers (around seven in x) start in the colon, while around three in 10 get-go in the rectum. They usually develop from small, non-malignant (beneficial) growths of tissue called polyps, that tin get cancerous (malignant) over time.

Bowel cancer can spread through the wall of your bowel to the surrounding tissues, and to your lymph nodes nearby. Information technology can also spread to other parts of your body, such as your liver and your lungs. The earlier bowel cancer is diagnosed, the better your chance of surviving it. So information technology's important to see your GP if you have symptoms, and to consider screening tests if yous're offered them.

Causes of bowel cancer

It's non known exactly why certain people get bowel cancer. But it'due south thought that information technology probably happens because of a mixture of different factors.

Although it's possible to develop bowel cancer at whatsoever age, it's rare before the age of forty. You're more likely to go it equally you lot become older. Your gamble of developing bowel cancer is also known to be higher if you lot:

• have a family history of bowel cancer – you're twice every bit likely to get information technology if your brother, sis or one of your parents has information technology
• take an inherited bowel condition, such as familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) or hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), also known as Lynch syndrome
• have a long-term bowel status, such as Crohn's illness or ulcerative colitis
• have a history of not-cancerous growths (called polyps or adenomas) or previous cancers in your bowel

If yous have whatever of these risk factors, your medico may recommend you go for regular bowel cancer screening. See our prevention section beneath for more than information on this.

Other adventure factors tin can include:

• obesity
• not eating enough fibre and/or eating a lot of processed and crimson meats
• lack of exercise
• diabetes
• smoking
• drinking a lot of alcohol

Having whatsoever of these risk factors doesn't mean that yous will definitely get bowel cancer – merely they increase your chances of developing it. However, you can develop bowel cancer without having any of these risk factors.

Diagnosis of bowel cancer

Your GP will ask about your symptoms and your medical history. It can exist worth keeping a diary to keep runway of your symptoms, which you can share with your GP. They'll need to examine you, which will include feeling around your tummy and inside your back passage (rectum) to bank check for any signs of lumps or swellings. For more information on this, see our FAQ below: What happens during a rectal test?

Your GP may also suggest you have a blood examination to run into if y'all take anaemia and to cheque your general health. They may inquire you to provide a poo sample, to check for any hidden blood in your poo.

If your GP thinks your symptoms need farther investigation, they'll refer you to a specialist. This may be a medical consultant who specialises in bowel atmospheric condition (gastroenterologist) or a surgeon who specialises in diseases of the big bowel (colorectal surgeon).

Your specialist may advise some of the post-obit tests.

• A colonoscopy. This allows your physician to look at the lining of your large bowel using a narrow, flexible, tube-similar telescopic camera called a colonoscope. Your doctor tin also use this to take a biopsy (pocket-size sample of tissue) which they'll send to a lab to await for cancer cells.
• A sigmoidoscopy. This is similar to a colonoscopy, merely merely looks at the inside of your back passage and the lower function of your bowel. Your physician may advise information technology as an culling to colonoscopy in some cases.
• A virtual colonoscopy. This uses a CT scan to create a three-dimensional image of the inside of your bowel. This is an option offered in some areas, if you aren't well enough to have a colonoscopy. It'due south also known every bit CT colonography.

If these tests find you have bowel cancer, you'll demand further tests to discover the size and position of the cancer, and to bank check if information technology has spread. This is called staging and may include ultrasound, CT and MRI scans.

Screening for bowel cancer

If you're between the ages of 60 and 74, y'all'll be offered bowel cancer screening every ii years in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, information technology's offered between the ages of 50 and 74. You can also asking a test if you're over 74. Screening is important because it may find bowel cancer before you take symptoms, and when treatment is probable to be more effective.

The screening kit, called the faecal immunochemical test (FIT), is sent to you to do at dwelling. The test tin can notice small amounts of claret in your poo that y'all may non unremarkably notice. It doesn't diagnose bowel cancer – simply the results will prove whether or not you need to have any further tests.

If you alive in England, you may also be invited to a one-off sigmoidoscopy test, called bowel scope screening, later on yous plow 55. This isn't available in all areas, and y'all'll still be sent the FIT kit subsequently y'all plow lx.

Your GP surgery will have information nigh the screening programme in your area.

Handling of bowel cancer

Your treatment and care volition be managed by a team of doctors and other cancer specialists. They will talk over with you what treatments they recommend in your particular circumstances. This will depend on the size of your neoplasm (lump of cells), its position and if it has spread, as well equally your general wellness and fettle.

If you discover out you take bowel cancer early, it may be possible to cure it. If you're diagnosed later and the cancer has spread, the focus of handling may be on prolonging your life and reducing symptoms.

Surgery

If possible, your medical team will aim to remove the cancer with bowel surgery. This may exist with keyhole (laparoscopic) surgery, which means the surgeon will insert tiny instruments into several minor cuts in your tummy, to perform the surgery. Or you may demand to have open surgery, where your surgeon volition make one big cut in your tum.

Your surgeon will remove the affected part of your big bowel and, if possible, join the two open ends together. Sometimes they may decide it's best to give your bowel a gamble to heal by forming a stoma. This is where the end of your bowel is brought out to the surface of your tummy. A pocketbook called a colostomy is placed over the stoma to collect the waste from your bowel.

A stoma is usually temporary and can be reversed a few months later in another operation. But sometimes, if a lot of your bowel has been removed, a permanent stoma may exist necessary. Nigh people won't need this, but your surgeon volition be able to let you lot know how likely it is for you. If you do need a stoma, a nurse volition visit you lot after your functioning to talk over with you how to intendance for your stoma.

Non-surgical treatments

You may besides have some of the post-obit treatments as well every bit or instead of surgery.

• Chemotherapy – this means taking medicines to kill cancer cells. You might have this before surgery to shrink the tumour (lump of cells) or after surgery to reduce the chance of the cancer coming back. If y'all're not able to accept surgery, you lot may take chemotherapy to assist slow down the growth of cancer and reduce your symptoms.
• Radiotherapy – this uses radiation to destroy the cancer cells. You might have this if your cancer is in your rectum, besides equally surgery and other treatments.
• Targeted cancer drugs – these are medicines that can seek out cancer cells and interfere with the mode they grow. They're sometimes used alongside chemotherapy for bowel cancer, peculiarly if the cancer has spread to other parts of your body.

Prevention of bowel cancer

It's not e'er possible to preclude bowel cancer. But in that location are certain lifestyle measures you lot can take to assistance continue your risk equally low as possible.

• Keep to a healthy weight.
• Consume a healthy, balanced diet with enough of fruit and vegetables, high-fibre foods, and low amounts of candy and red meat.
• Effort to keep agile by doing regular practise.
• If y'all smoke, try to stop. Speak to your GP for advice and back up on stopping smoking.
• Simply potable booze in moderation – drink sensibly by keeping to recommended limits.

Screening for people at high gamble of bowel cancer

If you're at high risk of bowel cancer, your doctor may recommend regular screening tests to check for any cancerous changes in your bowel. This might be if y'all take a strong family history of bowel cancer or a item health condition, like ulcerative colitis, that puts y'all at greater risk. If any polyps (growths of tissue) or areas of concern are spotted during your screening test, you may be able to take surgery to remove them and prevent cancer developing.

If you lot think yous may have an increased hazard of getting bowel cancer, enquire your GP about screening.

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Source: https://www.bupa.co.uk/health-information/cancer/bowel-cancer

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