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Colon Cancer Symptoms
Early colon cancer symptoms are similar to symptoms of other stomach problems. This makes it difficult to detect the disease in the early stages. One symptom, weight loss, is even desired by a lot of people. But if you have a few signs together, it is a good idea to get examined by your doctor.
Common Colon Cancer Symptoms:
- Changes in your bowel habits for more than 4 days
- Stomach cramps
- Blood in the stools
- Feeling full in your bowel after a bowel movement
- Unexplained weight loss
- Feeling tired
Changes in your bowel habits
Any change in your bowel habits for more than 4 days is a sign that some illness or problem is going on. If you have ongoing constipation, thin stools, diarrhea, or a combination of these - without another apparent cause - consider talking with your doctor. Tumors in your colon make it hard for the stools to pass, causing constipation. Other times, a tumor forces the stools to be thin or loose.
Stomach Cramps
Severe stomach cramps often go along with bowel problems. Tumors not only block your stools. They may also block gas, causing you to have stomach cramps.
Blood in your Stools
Blood in your stools is one of the colon cancer symptoms. Polyps tend to bleed, and that blood gets into the stools. Sometimes the stools are just darker in color. Other times you can actually see blood. But sometimes blood is there because of a simple problem. Please talk about it with your doctor.
Bowel still feels full after a bowel movement
Another symptom occurs when you've just had a bowel movement, and still feel full in your bowel. This is different from feeling "full" in your stomach after you've had a big meal. Even if this is not colon cancer, it is a signal that something is wrong and you should check with your doctor.
Weight Loss
Losing weight without trying is another cause of concern and could be a sign that something is wrong.
Tiredness or Exhaustion
Feeling tired or even exhausted can be a symptom of many diseases. But tiredness is especially true of colon cancer. When your tumors are bleeding, you are also losing iron. That iron is an important part of your blood that carries oxygen all over your body. It is the lack of oxygen that makes you feel tired.
Colon cancer symptoms are not always clear. Early detection is your best weapon against this disease. Listen to your body and to the signals it is giving you. It is great that you are reading this, but be certain to take action.
Protect Yourself From the High Cost of Cancer
According to the recent studies, American men have a 44% chance of developing cancer while the chances for women are about 37%. The general risk of developing colon cancer in the United States is about 6%. For this reason, it's important for everyone, particularly people above the age of 50 years, to go for routine screening.
Whether discovered early or late, cancer is a debilitating disease due to the care, costs and the mental and physical trauma involved. Many times the cost of treatment leaves the patient in heavy financial distress.
Most insurance plans do not cover the total cost of the treatment, which leaves the patient and their family in a lurch. These days people have started purchasing affordable supplemental cancer insurance that can help in covering otherwise uninsured expenses related to cancer illness. If you would like to learn more about supplemental cancer insurance you can click here.
- Colon Cancer Warning Signs - Knowing about colon cancer warning signs can possibly save your life. Some early colon cancer signs are blood in your stool, pain in your abdomen, fatigue etc. Some later symptoms are nausea and...
- Colon Cancer Symptoms - Early colon cancer symptoms are similar to symptoms of other stomach problems. Therefore diagnosis of this disease is not easy. If you are experiencing changes in your bowel habits that persist for more than 4 days it is a good idea to visit your doctor. Another common symptom is...
- Abdominal Pain Left Side - What does it mean to have abdominal pain left side? Abdominal pain can be a sign of various conditions ranging from heartburn and gallstones to colon cancer and hepatitis. In the case of colon cancer the symtoms may involve...
- Bowel Pain - Bowel pain is one of the symptoms for a number of medical problems, including colon cancer. Colorectal cancers often have no symptoms in the early stages until the cancer has progressed. Then bowel pain is likely. Rectal cancer usually occurs...
- Diverticulitis - Diverticulitis can give some symptoms similar to colon cancer, but only your doctor can really diagnose this disease. Diverticulitis results when small pouches in the digestive tract wall become inflamed. Diverticulas form when pressure inside the colon forces...
- Sleeping Problems - Sleeping problems are one of the most common side effects of colon cancer. If you have this problem try to build yourself up to your bedtime by doing relaxing activities such as getting a massage or taking a long bubble bath. Having adequate support will also help by clearing your head and releasing...
- Colon Cancer Causes Loss of Appetite - Colon cancer causes loss of appetite for various reasons. Even though you don’t feel like eating it is important that you keep up your food intake. Not doing so can cause you to lose valuable strength. Some techniques that might help you are to have someone else do the cooking and...
- Colorectal Cancer Symptoms - Knowing what the colorectal cancer symptoms are may save your life. Being educated on this subject is vital because it is the second most common cause of cancer related death in the entire United States. There are a number of factors that will determine whether or not you are at risk of developing colon cancer or rectal cancer some include...
- Symptoms of Rectal Cancer - Rectal and colon cancer symptoms are very similar and may not be obvious until after years of cancerous growth. The medical techniques to detect and remove rectal colon cancer polyps have greatly reduced the number of people who suffer from symptoms of rectal cancer. Some warning signs include...
- Rectum Cancer - What is the difference between colon cancer and rectal cancer? First off both cancers begin in the digestive system but rectal cancer is close to the anus and colon cancer is higher in the large intestine. Some symptoms of rectal cancer include...
