“The disease affects more and more people in their 30s and 40s” – Wel.nl

The KWF writes that over 12,000 people are diagnosed with colon cancer annually. “We can prevent at least half of that,” says Flemish gastroenterologist Luc Colmont. Against Het Laatste Nieuws In this International Month of Action against Colon Cancer.

killer
Colemont, who also founded the Stop Colon Cancer Foundation, explains that colon cancer is a colon metastasis – almost always. This malignancy always arises from a benign tumor also called a benign tumor. It takes 8 to 10 years to develop from a benign tumor to a malignant tumor. It is not a matter of a few weeks or months. Colon cancer is really a killer that takes years to afflict many. As many as 1 in 20 Belgians will have to deal with it in their lifetime. But know that polyps, meaning polyps, can be removed easily so that there is no chance for them to develop into colon cancer over the years. ”

Population screening
You can hardly discover a benign tumor on your own. “Unless you do the test,” says Colmont. That’s why participation in the bowel cancer screening program is so important for people between the ages of 50 and 74. It saves you a lot of suffering and saves lives. Population screening is free for this age group. Although I prefer that they provide this from the age of 45, just as it is recommended in America. The latest figures show that 1 in 6 colon cancer patients are younger than 50: more and more people are in their 30s and 40s. It is a persistent myth that only “elderly people” develop colon cancer. On the other hand, we also find that 1 in 5 patients is over 74 years old. The tricky thing about colon cancer is that you can’t feel the presence of a growth in your intestine: a benign tumor is only a few millimeters in size, and even if it has grown into a metastasis about 3 to 4 cm long, you can still feel it. No.

Causes of colon cancer
The causes of colon cancer must be researched, among other things, in an unhealthy lifestyle. A hereditary or familial component is present in only 20 percent of cases. We don’t yet know exactly what could be the cause. Age, obesity, an unhealthy lifestyle, and insufficient exercise are just a few of the many parts of the puzzle. Whether it is also about our immune system, air pollution, or certain foods … we don’t know (yet). In recent years, a lot of new knowledge has been gained based on research on intestinal flora. I think our intestinal flora contains a very important piece of puzzle explaining why or not someone might have colon cancer. For example, it is known that some bacteria in the intestinal flora can cause polyps to develop and that there are other bacteria that can transform a benign growth into something malignant. But more research is needed to know exactly that. ”

Bron (nene): HLN