Peter's Survivor Story
The music stopped when Peter found out he had colorectal cancer. With the help of his care team, he is singing cancer-free today.
In both men and women combined, colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths, yet it can be prevented or detected at an early stage. The disease forms in the colon or rectum. MaineHealth provides screening, diagnosis, and treatment for colon cancer and all gastrointestinal (GI) cancers. Screenings for colon cancer can be close to home at community hospitals and specialty practices. Our physician specialists include board-certified colorectal surgeons.
Most colon cancers develop from polyps that can turn into cancer. Screenings can find polyps before they are cancer. People at average risk of colon cancer are recommended for screening starting at age 50. Talk to your provider about scheduling a screening. Some people may be at higher risk and need to be screened earlier:
If your provider thinks you may have cancer, you will be asked to see specialists who evaluate and treat colon cancer:
It is important that cancer specialists highly trained in their area of care participate in evaluating your diagnosis and planning your treatment.
Certain lifestyle choices can increase your risk of getting colon cancer. They include:
Talk to your provider about getting help to quit or change activities that are affecting your health and putting you at a higher risk for cancer.
Symptoms of colon cancer can depend on the size of the tumor and its location in the lower GI tract.
Common signs are:
Doctors recommend that people 50 and older (younger if there is a family history) have regular colon cancer screenings. Colon Cancer Screenings help prevent and detect colon cancer. Early detection is a patient’s best chance for successful treatment and recovery.
Colonoscopy and FIT tests are the standard screening for colon cancer. During a colonoscopy, doctors look for signs of cancer and also remove any polyps that may have formed in a patient’s colon. Removing polyps, or small growths, before they turn into cancer is the best way to prevent colon cancer. A screening colonoscopy if negative is repeated every 10 years.
The FIT test requires the collection of a stool sample that is tested and this needs to be repeated annually.
Other screenings for colon cancer can include flexible sigmoidoscopy, fecal occult blood test, fecal immunoassay (FIT test), double contrast barium enema, CT colonography (or virtual colonoscopy).
Treatment for colon cancer varies depending on cancer stage and type. Complementary and integrative therapies, while not primary treatment options can be discussed with our providers. The size of the cancer and how far it has spread will affect treatment options. Common treatments include:
Surgery
Radiation
Chemotherapy
Targeted therapies
Clinical trials
Colorectal cancer may be prevented through screening, which means having tests to try to keep cancer from developing or to treat it at a very early stage.
You may be at greater risk for colorectal cancer for the reasons listed below. Talk to your primary care provider to see if you need to be screened for colorectal cancer.
The music stopped when Peter found out he had colorectal cancer. With the help of his care team, he is singing cancer-free today.