Saint Francis Medical Center, Southeast Missouri Hospital promote prevention, screening for colon cancer

Colorectal cancer does not discriminate.

According the American Cancer Society, 146,970 new cases of colorectal cancer were diagnosed in 2009 and were spread throughout different demographic groups. Colorectal cancer, which includes colon and rectal cancer, caused 49,920 deaths last year.

According to Dr. Tim Edwards, a gastroenterologist with Gastroenterology Associates in Cape Girardeau, colon cancer rates in the area reflect the national statistic.

"Colon cancer doesn't really have a demographic," he said. "It's equal among men and women and equal across ethnicities. It doesn't care who you are or what you do, it can happen to anybody."

One in 19 people will have colorectal cancer in their lifetime, according to the cancer society. For the past 15 years, however, the rate of deaths from colorectal cancers has decreased mainly because of better screening and treatment practices.

Dr. Michael Freeman, with Cape Gastroenterology Specialists, said men and women should consider having a screening test done beginning at age 50, and earlier if they have a family history of colon cancer or other gastrointestinal disease.

"The most common and most accurate form of colon cancer screening is a colonoscopy," Freeman said. "The colonoscopy test is typically performed by a gastroenterologist and is done under sedation."

Sometimes the patient is given a kit to take home and perform a fecal occult blood test on a stool sample.

Edwards said early screening allows doctors to find polyps, which grow in the colon and if left untreated can turn into colon cancer.

"There are not normally any symptoms of the polyps aside from rectal bleeding, unexplained weight loss, unexplained abdominal pain or obstructed bowels," Edwards said. "Usually when it gets to that point is when we start to get worried, but most of the time with polyps or colon cancer there are vague, if any, symptoms at all."

Doctors will remove any polyps they find, but stopping or preventing the cancer doesn't end there. Screening needs to continue, Edwards said.

"Our goal is not to find colon cancer but to prevent it," he said. "We can do that by removing polyps before they have a chance to turn into cancer."

Edwards said the earlier cancer is found, the easier it is to treat. Doctors will try to first remove any tumors, and depending on the stage of the cancer, will determine the need for chemotherapy.

"The goal is to avoid that altogether," he said. "The best treatment is prevention."

Edwards said there is an association between developing polyps and colon cancers with lifestyle choices, such as smoking, obesity and eating a diet high in red meat, but the biggest risk factors for developing colon cancer are family history and age.

"Those are the two things you can't control," Edwards said. "This is probably the only cancer that can be prevented, other than cervical cancer, if you catch it early."

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. In Cape Girardeau, both Saint Francis Medical Center and Southeast Missouri Hospital are hosting events to make people more aware of risks, symptoms and treatment of colon cancer.

On Friday, Saint Francis held an exhibit of a 40-foot-long, 8-foot-high colon replica and presentations from the hospital's gastroenterologists and nurses. The exhibit was presented in conjunction with the American Cancer Society and allowed visitors to see representations of healthy and cancerous colon tissue. The physicians gave presentations and visitors received resource materials on colon cancer.

Earlier this month, Southeast Missouri Hospital asked students from Southeast Missouri State University to create artistic sculpture pieces designed to look like the polyps. Three of the winning sculptures are on display at West Park Mall through the end of March.

Southeast is also offering colorectal cancer screenings at the Wellness Connection and is selling participants a hemoccult blood test, which can be taken at home, for $10.

On Wednesday, a presentation on colon health awareness will be at the Wellness Connection featuring Dr. Emad Abuhamdu, a hospital gastroenterologist. The free program begins at 5:45 p.m. Register by calling the Wellness Connection at 332-1587.