Cancer Impacting Younger Generations
- A woman, 33, is sharing her colorectal cancer journey with other young people who need to be mindful of unusual symptoms. She mistakenly thought lingering stomach pains and blood in stool were hemorrhoids but learned she had colon cancer after seeing her doctor.
- Chemotherapy’s side effects include fatigue, gastrointestinal effects, nausea, and more. Chemo drugs designed to kill cancer cells also impact healthy cells, leading to side effects.
- To better manage chemotherapy side effects, experts recommend exercising and eating a nutritious diet with enough fruits, vegetables, and protein. Getting enough sleep helps with fatigue and allows you to recover quicker. Your doctor may also recommend medications to help with side effects.
- A study published in JAMA Network Open found higher cancer incidents among younger people. While breast cancer saw the highest number of cases, gastrointestinal cancers like colorectal cancers saw the starkest increase.
- A colonoscopy is a procedure doctors use to screen for colon cancer by looking inside your colon.
- Researchers say increased obesity rates and environmental factors likely contribute to the growing number of young people diagnosed with cancer.
A mother of two learned she was facing cancer just days before her 33rd birthday. Melissa Dunmore prided herself on being fit and juggling her career and family. However, symptoms of stomach pain and blood in her stool proved to be more than a benign stomach ache and hemorrhoids.
“When I heard the word ‘cancer,’ I knew that hair loss comes with it,” Dunmore explained to Australian news outlet NY Breaking.
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However, in addition to bloody stools, Dunmore started experiencing severe stomach pains. She went to see her doctor, and after finally receiving a colonoscopy, Dunmore got some answers. A 20 cm tumor was found in her colon, along with 11 small precancerous polyps.
Dunmore was now facing stage 3 colorectal cancer.
One of the most challenging parts of her journey was explaining her diagnosis to her young children.
“I sat down with both of them and explained in simple terms what was wrong. They knew I had to have a colonoscopy, and the next day after found out, I said, ‘The doctors found a really big germ in my body that needs to get out,” Dunmore explained.
Dunmore had her large colon and surrounding lymph nodes removed. She then began chemotherapy this past April and will need 12 rounds of it.
WATCH: Managing Neuropathy During Chemo
The mother of two experienced common side effects of chemotherapy, including diarrhea, fatigue, and vomiting. She also experiences neuropathy, which refers to pain or distressing loss of feeling in the hands or feet, and is a common side effect that many women experience during chemotherapy.
Although Dunmore’s cancer journey is far from over, she’s beyond grateful to have the support of her husband and family, who are making the life-altering diagnosis easier to bear.
“I am fortunate to have a great support network around me,” Dunmore said.
Expert Resources For Colon Cancer
Managing Chemotherapy and Its Side Effects
Chemotherapy is an effective tool for oncologists to help treat cancer by stopping cancerous cells from growing, dividing, and spreading to other organs. Chemo works by traveling through the bloodstream, killing cancerous cells. However, the process also impacts healthy cells, leading to side effects.
Patients almost universally experience fatigue, often alongside gastrointestinal side effects, such as nausea. Doctors have many effective medications to combat chemo-induced nausea. “But mitigating that fatigue often depends on the patient,” gynecologic oncologist Dr. Renata Urban told SurvivorNet.
“Neuropathy is probably one of the most challenging side effects,” Dr. Urban continued.
Neuropathy results from damage to the peripheral nerves. It usually resolves after chemotherapy treatment, but sometimes symptoms can persist. While it’s typically characterized by numbness or a pins-and-needles sensation in the hands and feet, neuropathy can have several different symptoms, including:
- Weakness in the hands or feet
- Stabbing or burning pain in the hands or feet
- Difficulty gripping, such as when holding a fork
- Difficulty with fine motor skills, such as writing or buttoning a shirt
Nausea and vomiting are common side effects of chemotherapy. When chemotherapy affects the rapidly dividing cells in the stomach lining, the resulting cellular havoc in the gastrointestinal tract can lead to side effects such as nausea and vomiting. However, doctors can help patients mitigate the hit with various medications before, during, and after treatment.
“Part of the chemotherapy prescription includes a set regimen of anti-nausea medications…We also ensure patients have medications at home that they can use should they develop nausea after treatment,” Dr. Urban added.
Tips to Navigating Chemo Side Effects
Doctors don’t have an arsenal of prescription medications to combat fatigue. However, you can do several things to help minimize the hit and restore your energy.
- Exercise: While it may be counterintuitive, physical activity can help alleviate side effects, especially fatigue. “Although ovarian cancer is not common, we often draw upon the experience of patients with breast cancer and colon cancer that have shown that physical activity can not only improve quality of life but may also have beneficial impacts on cancer outcomes,” Dr. Urban says.
- Eat well: Even though nausea may interfere with your ability to eat a healthy diet, it’s essential to ensure you’re eating appropriately, getting enough protein, and not losing weight. Not only will nourishing your body support your recovery, but it may also help you feel more energized.
- Sleep: Want to mitigate fatigue? Be sure to maintain your regular sleep-wake cycle while on treatment. Sticking to a set sleep schedule helps reduce fatigue by ensuring enough hours for your body to heal and restore itself each night. It may also help you recover more quickly by keeping energy levels high during the daytime.
Treating Neuropathy Symptoms
Doctors have several strategies for helping patients deal with this side effect. Once a patient begins experiencing the symptoms of neuropathy, they’ll be carefully monitored to ensure they don’t get worse. Before each chemotherapy infusion, the attending oncologist will assess whether the symptoms have progressed. If the symptoms worsen, they may adjust the dose or delay treatment. They may also try switching to another chemotherapy drug.
WATCH: Managing chemo side effects.
Colon Cancer’s Impact on Younger People
Researchers published a study last year that evaluated more than 562,000 people from diverse backgrounds in the United States between 2010 and 2019. The study sought to learn the patterns in the incidence of cancer in people younger than 50. It found that the early onset of cancer among this group rose by 1 percent. Participants aged 30 to 39 saw cases increase by about 19 percent.
The types of cancer that saw increases include breast cancer, which had the highest number of incident cases. Other cancers, including thyroid and gastrointestinal cancers, also saw increases. Colon and rectal cancers saw the starkest increase by roughly 15 percent.
Researchers said the increase in cancer rates among younger people is likely associated with increased “obesity as well as changes in environmental exposures, such as smoke and gasoline, sleep patterns, physical activity, microbiota (microorganisms living in a particular environment) and carcinogenic compounds (chemical compounds that cause cancer in people).”
Understanding Colorectal Cancer
Colon or colorectal cancer affects your large intestine (colon) or the end of your intestine (rectum).
WATCH: Dr. Heather Yeo dispels common misconceptions about colon cancer.
The cancer starts when abnormal lumps called polyps grow in the colon or rectum. If you don’t have these polyps removed, they can sometimes change into cancer. It takes up to 10 years for a colon polyp to become full-blown cancer, according to SurvivorNet experts.
Most colon cancers can be prevented if people are regularly screened. The screening usually involves a colonoscopy, in which a long, thin tube attached to a camera examines the colon and rectum. If no polyps are discovered, the following screening won’t be needed for about ten years.
“We know that colon cancers can be prevented when polyps are found early,” SurvivorNet medical advisor Dr. Heather Yeo explains.
“Lowering the screening age helps somewhat with this, but access to care is a real problem,” Yeo added.
The American Gastrointestinal Association lowered the recommended initial age for a colorectal screening from 50 to 45. However, experts recommend screening earlier for some people who may be at an increased risk of developing colon cancer.
How to Screen for Colon Cancer?
A colonoscopy is a procedure doctors use to screen for colon cancer by looking inside your colon.
This procedure requires your colon to be “cleaned out.” To clear out your colon, your doctor will prescribe a “bowel prep,” a liquid you drink the night before the procedure. The prep acts as a laxative that causes you to have multiple loose stools before your procedure.
Once your colon is cleared out, the gastroenterologist performing the procedure can have a clear look to evaluate if any polyps or masses are present.
Depending on the size and number of polyps found, it is recommended that patients undergo a repeat colonoscopy within three to five years.
WATCH: Understanding a colonoscopy
Dr. Zuri Murrell, a colorectal cancer surgeon and Director of the Cedars-Sinai Colorectal Cancer Center, previously explained the colonoscopy procedure to SurvivorNet.
“When we see a polyp, we actually physically take the polyp out through the colonoscope,” he explained.
“What does that mean? That means we basically put a wire through with a little bit of a little flange at the end and we pull the polyp out. Now, note there is no pain with that. Inside the colon, there are no pain fibers. So there’s no pain,” Dr. Murrell added.
The advantage of a colonoscopy is that your doctor can remove any polyps found during the test. Many colon cancers can be caught on colonoscopy before they develop or when the polyps are small enough to be removed without surgery.
Questions to Ask Your Doctor
If you are facing a colon cancer diagnosis, here are some questions you may ask your doctor.
- What are my treatment options based on my diagnosis?
- If I’m worried about managing the costs of cancer care, who can help me?
- What support services are available to me? To my family?
- Could this treatment affect my sex life? If so, how and for how long?
- What are the risks and possible side effects of treatment?
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