Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death from cancer in the United States. Being that March is colorectal cancer awareness month, how can we lower our chance of colon and rectal cancer?
Only 25% of colon cancer patients have a family history. For individuals who do not have a family history of colon cancer, the onset can be attributed by lifestyle (poor diet and lack of exercise), environmental exposure, or stress. Stress causes inflammation, which ultimately suppresses the immune system and links to cancer.
What are some of the risk factors?
What we can’t change:
- Age: The risk of colorectal cancer goes up after the age of 50; however, that does not mean those under 50 do not get colon cancer. Get your first screening colonoscopy at age 50 providing you don’t have any other increased risk to have it earlier.
- Family history: Having a family member with colorectal cancer doubles a person’s risk of cancer, which means that you should get screened 10 years earlier than the age they were diagnosed.
- Personal history: If you have a history of inflammatory bowel disease, ovarian cancer, previous colorectal cancer, or high risk polyps – you are also at increased risk for colon cancer.
What we can do to reduce the onset of colon cancer:
- Alcohol: Having more than 3 drinks a day will increase the risk of colon cancer and formation of large colon polyps.
- Poor Diet and Smoking: We know that being overweight and smoking are bad for our health, and both increase the risk of illness and disease.
Expert Recommendations to Limit Your Risk:
- Exercise, quit smoking and limit alcoholic intake.
- Increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables and reduce the intake of fatty meat (especially red meat)
These are steps we can take to decrease our risk of colorectal cancer. It’s no guarantee but it will increase our odds of being cancer free. Lastly, schedule a colonoscopy to be screened.
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Dr. Alex Jenny Ky is an Associate Professor of Surgery in the Department of Surgery at Mount Sinai. As a member of the Division of Colon & Rectal Surgery, Dr. Ky is an expert in laparoscopic and robotic colon and rectal surgery. Dr. Ky is the first physician in New York City to use a sacral nerve stimulator and one of the few physicians in New York City treating fecal incontinence with the use of an artificial anal sphincter.