Colon cancer

There is no single cause of colon cancer. However, there are factors that increase the chance. Colon cancer mainly occurs in people over the age of 50. But younger people can also get it.

Lifestyle plays a role. Unhealthy food and little exercise also increase the risk of colon cancer.

Other risk factors include:

• Overweight
• Drinking a lot of alcohol
• Eat red or processed meat often

Symptoms of colon cancer may include:

• Blood in the stool
• A (sudden) change in bowel pattern and/or abdominal pain
• Losing weight for no reason
• Fatigue

These symptoms do not immediately mean that you have colon cancer. But it is good to have this examined by a doctor.

Colon cancer almost always arises from a polyp in the intestinal wall. A polyp is a benign thickening or outgrowth of the intestine, which can become malignant.

Cancer can occur in several places in the intestine. About 70% occurs in the last parts of the large intestine, of which a third in the very last part: the rectum.

Colon cancer is also called colorectal cancer. This is the collective name for tumors in the large intestine (colon) and rectum.

Colon cancer is one of the most common types of cancer. The diagnosis of colon cancer is made 14,000 times a year (IKNL). 5% of these people have a hereditary form of colon cancer.

The most common form of hereditary colon cancer is Lynch Syndrome. Other common forms include familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), MUTYH-related polyposis (MAP), and other rarer polyp syndromes. Read more about Lynch Syndrome.