Colorectal Cancer - Types, Symptoms and Treatments

Cancer that starts in the colon is called colon cancer, and cancer that starts in the rectum is called rectal cancer. Cancer that affects these organs can also be called colorectal cancer. It is a disease that harms the first cells (cancer) in the intestinal tissues. Colorectal cancer occurs in the rectum or colon. This type of cancer occurs when abnormal tissue develops on the inner walls of the colon and rectum. These abnormal tissues are usually present in the form of polyps. Polyps develop as tissue projections away from the colon walls, while the rest are connected to the thin wall of the colon. Their shape is similar to that of mushrooms. Polyps are quite common, especially in older people. Most polyps are not cancerous. However, some polyps will eventually become cancerous. Uncontrolled, cancerous polyps cause tumors, which grow in size until they penetrate the intestinal wall and involve adjacent organs and lymph nodes through a process known as metastasis.

Type

In general, colorectal cancer tends to slow down, develop gradually and eventually penetrate the intestinal wall. When they spread, they usually attack the nearby lymph nodes. On the right side of the colon near the cecum, the cancer usually grows into a colon. They can be large enough to hurt and may cause bleeding. In these cases anemia from chronic blood loss is often the first sign and why the test of the stool for invisible, or hidden, blood is important.

Most polyps and cancers appear on the left side of the colon. In the left or right colon, where the duct is narrow, the cancer usually grows around the colon wall and surrounds it. Left cancers usually repair the bowel, causing partial blockage.

Symptoms

Symptoms may include:

• Diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, fatigue.
• Go to the toilet more often.
• The feeling that the intestine is not properly emptied after bowel movement.
• Pain and bloating in the abdomen.
• Blood in stools.
• Loss of unexplained weight.
• Chunks of the stomach.
• Iron deficiency that cannot be explained to men, or women after menopause.

Cause

• Alcohol.
• Polip.
• Diabetes.
• Age and gender.
• High cholesterol diet.
• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
• Genetics.
• Lack of exercise.
• Smoking.
• Obesity.
• Many adenomatous polyps develop in the colon, eventually causing cancer.
• Family history of this cancer.
• Drug effects.

Diagnosis

A person with colorectal cancer will be diagnosed in the following way:

• It is found in routine examination tests.
• Symptoms take someone to a doctor, and tests to find out the symptoms of colorectal cancer.

Treatment

Treatment may include the following options, alone or in combination:

• Surgery - Surgical options include:

1. Intestinal resection: This operation involves cutting into the abdomen to reach the colon or rectal area affected by cancer. The surgeon cuts the cancer and the colon or rectum adjacent to it. Then both ends of the colon or rectum are sewn together.

2. Liver resection: In this operation the surgeon cuts the cancer that has spread to the liver and also cuts the parts of the liver that are next to the cancer. Up to half of your liver can be released while the rest is healthy. If the cancer in your liver is too big to be surgically removed, you may be given chemotherapy to shrink the tumor. If the tumor becomes small enough, it can be removed with surgery.

3. Lungs, adrenals, or ovaries hatch, depending on where the cancer has spread.
If the cancer has returned to the colon, more colon or rectum may need to be removed.

• Chemotherapy: -

Chemotherapy may be recommended before surgery in some cases, although metastatic disease may appear confined to the liver. Postoperative chemotherapy can extend the survival of people whose cancer is spread to nearby lymph nodes. The way chemotherapy is given depends on the type and level of cancer treated. If successful liver metastases surgery, additional chemotherapy is usually recommended after surgery.

• Radiation therapy: -

Radiotherapy is not used routinely in these cancers, as it can cause enteritis radiation, and it is difficult to target specific colon points. It is more common for radiation to be used in rectal cancer, as the rectum does not move like a colon and is thus easier to target. If therapy is given before surgery, radiation can reduce the size of the tumor. This may increase the chance that the tumor will be removed successfully. Radiation before surgery also reduces the risk of cancer returning after treatment.

• Targeted Therapy: - Therapy is a treatment that uses drugs or other substances to identify and attack certain cancer cells without harming normal cells. Monoclonal antibody therapy is a targeted therapy used to treat it.

• Immunotherapy: This therapy improves the immune system and increases the risk of cancer cells being killed.

• Monoclonal antibodies: - These antibodies are laboratory-produced proteins that can identify cancer cells for destruction or prevent tumor cells from dividing.

• Gene therapy: - This therapy involves genetic modification. Either a new gene is introduced to enhance the body's ability to kill cancer cells or the gene is directed directly to the cancer cells, causing them to die. Getting the genes to the right cell in the body is a major challenge. The treatment is still experimental and in its early stages of development.

Colon and rectal cancer are common. The risk of developing colorectal cancer in patients with ulcerative colitis depends on the duration of illness, disease severity, family history. Most importantly, patients need to be educated about the risk of colorectal cancer. Recent advancements have allowed colorectal cancer screening guidelines to be completed. They also suggest improving the quality and use of testing tools. Decreases in both the incidence of colorectal cancer and death have occurred and are considered to be related to the examination.

------------------