The alarming rise of colon cancer in men in their 30s – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports
(WSVN) – It’s called the “silent surge” — men in their 30s being diagnosed with colon cancer. 7Investigates why their symptoms are often misdiagnosed. Here’s 7’s Courtney Allen.
Thirty-four-year-old Rory Kennedy was on top of the world, married with a newborn and living an active life.
Rory Kennedy: “When you’re in your 30s and you’re living a life where you’re just on the go and you work out all the time, you eat well, I’ve never had any health issues.”
He felt great, with perfect blood work and no reason to worry. Until he started experiencing bowel problems and went to see a doctor.
Rory Kennedy: “I had black, tarry stools. They just thought I had an ulcer. So we did some testing. They gave me some antibiotics and symptoms went away pretty quickly.”
But two years later, his symptoms came back. Doctors performed a colonoscopy and endoscopy. The tests revealed he had colon cancer.
Rory Kennedy: “Surgery was scheduled for just two weeks later, then four weeks after that, it’s chemo and chemo is for six months.”
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani at Mt. Sinai Medical Center is seeing more and more young colon cancer patients like Rory.
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani, colorectal surgeon: “I’ve seen a significant increase in the numbers. The youngest patient that I’ve diagnosed is as early as 26-years-old.”
She said diet, environment and genetics can play a role, but the mindset of younger men can be part of the problem.
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani: “It’s not something that they want to talk about, especially men. You know, they’re like, “Do I need it? It’s not necessary.’ Or like, they’ll give you 1,000 arguments why they’re fine.”
But it is a serious problem. The American Cancer Society recently lowered the age for a first time colonoscopy from 50 to 45, because catching colon cancer early is a key to survival.
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani: “So let’s say that you find a polyp that was just beginning, like pre-cancerous polyp, and you remove that. And that’s the absolute prevention of a colon cancer.”
Dr. Muddassani said it’s tough to get younger patients to understand their risks.
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani: “Listen to your body. It’s extremely important that you listen to your body. If you feel something is persistent, when I say persistent, it is more than 3 months and it doesn’t go away, ask yourself a question: ‘Are my symptoms getting better, worse or the same?’”
A few months after Roy’s first surgery, doctors found two more tumors on his liver, which put him at stage 4.
Rory Kennedy: “The percentages aren’t good, but I do know people do beat this. You really don’t have another option, you got to keep going, especially when you’re younger and you have a wife and a kid.”
He wants other young men to hear his story so if they are experiencing any symptoms, they seek out an early diagnosis and early life-saving treatment.
Courtney Allen, 7News.
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