Colon Cancer Rates Rising
Colorectal cancer rates have risen in a younger demographic than ever before. There has been a 17% increase in colon cancer cases in adults aged 50 or younger in the past decade. This increase comes as a shock, since colon cancer numbers as a whole have decreased.
According to the LA Times, "most people under 50 are not screened for colorectal cancers -- only those with certain risk factors, such as family history, chronic inflammatory bowel disease or a predisposing genetic condition. Lack of routine screening gives benign polyps time to turn cancerous and early cancers time to turn invasive."
Although the majority of cases of colon cancer still occur in the population older than 50, this new study raises questions to the lifestyles of Americans. The increase in colorectal cancer has been attributed to factors such as changes in diet and decrease in physical activity. The younger generation must be motivated to live a healthier life and to have routine health scans to prevent such rates from rising any further.
