Country Singer Joshua Ray Walker, 32, Says He’s Determined to ‘Fight’ After Sharing Colon Cancer Diagnosis – Why This Cancer Is Impacting Younger Adults

Alongside a new video clip of Walker singer his song “Thank You For Listening,” a tribute to his supporters, Walker’s lengthy caption read, “Hey y’all, I’ve got mostly good news and some bad news that I need to share with you.

“The good news is that I’m releasing a new song tonight at midnight called ‘Thank You For Listening’. It is basically a love letter to anyone who’s ever supported me in my pursuit of music, even just by lending an ear in passing. This song is a brand-new original on a collection of performances by the same name. The additional tracks are acoustic renditions of songs I’ve previously released. This project is raw, and intimate, and I’m extremely excited to share it with you early next year!”

He continued, “The bad news is that I have been dealing with some health issues this year that have made my quality of life on the road and off pretty brutal lately. Even though my prognosis isn’t what I would have hoped for, it is a huge relief to have some answers and a course of action moving forward.

“Basically, my doctors have found a localized cancer in my colon, and I will be undergoing surgery to remove part of my colon on January, 3rd. Luckily, we found it early, and it’s likely I’ll make a full recovery without further treatment. This is great news, but I will need to take a few months off after the surgery to recover.”

Walker noted that the idea of his new song has been in his mind for some time now, “but it has definitely been colored by what’s been happening in my life throughout the process of creating it,” he said.

“What started as a simple ‘thank you’ to my fans, ended up having a much deeper meaning, including my mortality, but this is in no way a goodbye. I’m going to fight with everything I have, and my odds are great. All I ask is for your patience and healing thoughts during this time,” he concluded

“I can’t believe what I’ve been able to accomplish because of your support. That is what this song is about. I would have written songs and continued to play them to empty bar rooms forever, but because of you I’ve been able to accomplish more than I ever could have dreamed. I still can’t believe that people want to hear my songs. So ‘Thank You For Listening’, and we’ll get through this together. This song is for you. Love y’all!”

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If you were recently diagnosed with cancer, like Walker, you likely know about the wide range of emotions that news can bring. This is one of the most difficult phases of the cancer journey to overcome.

However, it’s during these early stages that a team of supporters can be most useful. Your supporters can be made up of close family members and friends. Your support group can also be filled with people from outside your inner circle.

“Some people don’t need to go outside of their family and friends circle. ” New York-based psychiatrist Dr. Lori Plutchik previously told SurvivorNet that they feel like they have enough support there.

“But for people who feel like they need a little bit more, it is important to reach out to a mental health professional,” she added.

One of the benefits of having supporters includes helping alleviate stress and anxiety following your diagnosis. Supporters can also help advocate for you during treatment.

Sometimes, it is not always easy to share news you have cancer, even among loved ones. You can seek a trained professional to center your support group around such instances. Mental health professionals can help fill this space because many are trained to help you navigate your cancer treatment.

Colon Cancer: A Silent Killer

Dr. Heather Yeo, a colorectal surgeon and surgical oncologist at Weill Cornell Medicine and New York-Presbyterian, previously told SurvivorNet, “Colon cancer is considered a silent and deadly killer.

“What happens is people often don’t know that they have colon cancer. They don’t have any symptoms. That’s why we screen for colon cancer in the United States.”

The Rate of Colon Cancer is Increasing in Those Under 50

“You should be screened for colon cancer, even if you have no family history. Once you have your initial screening colonoscopy, if there are no polyps and you have no high-risk factors, usually once every 10 years is fine,” she advises.

“Colon cancer is a slowly progressing cancer. If you have any family history of colon cancer, you should be screened about 10 years before your family member had colon cancer. So if you have a family member that was 53, you should be screened at 43.”

Colon Cancer Appearing More in Younger People

It’s great to see Joshua Ray Walker sharing his colonoscopy experience in part, so people can feel more comfortable with getting this procedure at a younger age.

Although the average age people are diagnosed with colon cancer is 68 for men and 72 for women, according to the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute reports that since the 1990s, colorectal cancer cases have been rising among adults younger than 50.

Research published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians found the proportion of cases in people younger than 55 years old increased from 11% in 1995 to 20% in 2019.

“We know rates are increasing in young people, but it’s alarming to see how rapidly the whole patient population is shifting younger, despite shrinking numbers in the overall population,” cancer epidemiologist and lead study author Rebecca Siegel said.

Researchers are still trying to determine why younger people are being diagnosed in greater numbers. Some experts point to risk factors which include obesity, physical inactivity, and smoking as a possible explanation for the increase.

“We don’t know for sure why we are seeing earlier onset and death from colon cancer,” Dr. Heather Yeo, a surgical oncologist who specializes in colorectal cancers at Weill Cornell Medicine, told SurvivorNet.

“It is likely a combination of factors, including diet and genetics as well as access to care and some environmental factors,” Dr. Yeo added.

Screening for Colon Cancer

Luckily, most colon cancers can be prevented through routine screenings. Colon cancer screenings usually involve a colonoscopy, in which a long thin tube attached to a camera is used to examine the colon and rectum.

MORE: All Americans Should Begin Colorectal Cancer Screening at Age 45, According to New Guidelines; Previous Age Was 50

The advantage of a colonoscopy is that your doctor can remove any polyps found during the test before they turn into cancer. If no polyps are discovered, the next screening won’t be needed for about 10 years.

Dr. Paul Oberstein Explains Common Colon Cancer Symptoms

A colonoscopy isn’t the only colon cancer screening test. There are other options, including stool tests that detect blood or DNA, and flexible sigmoidoscopy, which checks only the lower third of your colon.

Ask your doctor whether any of these tests would be good additions to a colonoscopy, based on your risks and/or personal preferences.

RELATED: Can the Stuff in My Gut Cause Cancer? There May Be A Link to Colon Cancer

“We know that colon cancers can be prevented when polyps are found early,” Dr. Yeo added. “Lowering the screening age helps somewhat with this, but access to care is a real problem.”

The American Gastrointestinal Association lowered the recommended initial age for a colorectal screening from 50 to 45.

“The fact that we have now reduced the screening age to 45 is a huge step,” Michael Sapienza, CEO of Colorectal Cancer Alliance, told SurvivorNet in an earlier conversation.

“It will allow us to potentially screen 15 million more eligible Americans a year and will certainly save lives. I also think what it’ll do is bring much-needed attention that even if you’re younger than 45 you should be paying more attention. I think that’s also a really important message.”

Cancer Research Legend Urges Patients to Get Multiple Opinions

What Increases Your Risk for Developing Colon Cancer?

For some people, certain risk factors can influence their risk of getting colon cancer. They include the following:

• Are older. About 90% of cases are in people aged 50 or older, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). Yet it is possible to get this cancer earlier in life.
• Have inflammatory bowel disease.  Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis can, over time, cause cells in your intestines to turn cancerous.
• Have a family history of this cancer. Just under one-third of people who get colon cancer have family members with the disease.
• Have a gene mutation. About 5% of colorectal cancers are caused by an inherited genetic mutation that causes syndromes such as familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) or hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (Lynch syndrome).
• Don’t exercise very often. Staying active can lower your risk.
• Eat a diet that’s high in meat. Regularly eating red meats like burgers and steaks, and processed meats such as hot dogs and bacon might put you at higher risk.  Eating more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains instead might lower your risk.
• You are overweight or obese. Having too much weight increases your risk of both getting colon cancer and dying from it.
• Drink a lot of alcohol.  Limiting alcohol to one drink daily for women and two drinks daily for men could help lower your risk.
• Use tobacco. Long-term smokers are more likely to get this cancer than nonsmokers.

Keeping Up With Recommended Screenings

As a part of routine care, people who have had colitis for eight years or more may get a colonoscopy to screen for colon cancer every one to three years, depending on their individual level of inflammation.

In the general population, guidelines recommend colon cancer screening once every ten years starting at age 45. Follow up screenings sooner than ten years are based on whether you have any abnormalities.

Dr. Heather Yeo Breaks Down Different Ways to Screen for Colon Cancer

Doctors use colonoscopies to check for abnormal growths (polyps) in the colon that can be cancerous or develop into cancer. People with colitis tend to develop a different kind of polyp than other people do, and these polyps are more likely to contain atypical or pre-cancerous cells.

“So those polyps are one step closer to developing into cancer, whereas a lot of the polyps we find in the general population are benign,” Dr. Limketkai said.

Crohn’s disease, however, is a little bit different. Because this condition can affect any part of the GI tract, Crohn’s disease only raises risk for colon cancer if the inflammation is in the colon, which varies from one person to the next.

Does inflammation cause any other types of cancer? Dr. Stephen Freedland explains.

“If it spares the colon, then we don’t have to do all the surveillance that we do in colitis,” Dr. Limketkai explained. “Of course, you may need to have colonoscopies for other reasons, and while you’re doing that, you’re getting a screening anyway.”

When it comes to inflammatory bowel disease, the major risk factor for colon cancer is untreated disease. Treatment, which may include a combination of medication, dietary changes and routine endoscopies, keeps inflammation under control. Sticking to that treatment can help keep colon cancer risk to a minimum, too.

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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