Understanding Your Family History
- Country star Joshua Ray Walker, 34, has opened up about his significant family history of cancer in a recent interview, revealing that all four of his grandparents and his father died of cancer before he faced his own unexpected colon cancer diagnosis in his 30s.
- Colorectal screenings are generally advised starting at age 45, but individuals with higher risk factors, such as a family history of colon cancer, may need earlier testing. Consulting a doctor about screening options is recommended.
- Colon cancers start out as a polyp, or small growth, in the colon that causes no symptoms. Although polyps can’t be felt, they can be picked up by screening tests before they cause a problem. It takes up to 10 years for a colon polyp to become a full-blown cancer, which gives doctors time to remove the polyp before it causes a problem.
- The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends that state colon cancer screenings begin at 45 years old. This is in response to a rise in colon cancer diagnoses in younger adults. In the past, the disease had predominantly been found in adults 50 years or older, but for those predisposed to get it at a younger age, these new guidelines could potentially help catch it at an earlier stage.
The 34-year-old “Lot Lizard” singer, who says in his documentary, that “no-one in my family went into the doctor unless it was absolutely an emergency,” recently spoke with Channel 4 News about his health journey, reflecting on just how unexpected his cancer diagnosis was.
Read MoreThe most common inherited syndromes associated with colorectal cancer are Lynch syndrome, also called hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), and familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). Other, less common inherited syndromes can also increase colorectal cancer risk.
Additionally, colon cancer risk can increase with age, family history or inherited gene changes, inflammatory bowel disease, physical inactivity, an unhealthy diet, excess weight, alcohol use, and tobacco use.
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In Walker’s documentary, which initially premiered at the Dallas International Film Festival in April 2026 and is now available exclusively for streaming on Yahoo, the country star further details his family history, saying, “My dad passed out at work. He got taken to the hospital. My grandpa had been coughing up blood for years and hiding it. He worked at Bethlehem Steel and GM and a concrete factory and, I mean, he worked every labor job you can think of that gives you lung cancer.
“My grandfather died of cancer. My dad died of cancer, and now I have cancer. I’m 33. When you say it like that, it seems like I should have expected it more, but it was pretty unexpected.”
More On Understanding Family History & Colon Cancer Risk
- Considering Genetic Testing? Talk to Family if You Can
- When Cancer Runs in the Family: Survivor Amy Armstrong On The Importance of Genetic Testing
- After Sharon Osbourne Learned She Was a Carrier of the ‘Cancer Gene’ She Got Her Kids Tested – Understanding Family History and Cancer Risk
- Colon Cancer Screening is Extremely Important; Guidelines Now Say to Start at Age 45 if There Is No Family History
- Why It’s Crucial to Know Your Family Health History — Today’s Craig Melvin Shares a Personal Colon Cancer Awareness Message
- Colitis and Some Cases of Crohn’s Raise Colon Cancer Risk
- Does Alcohol Impact the Risks for Colon and Other Cancers?
- Lowering Your Risk for Colon Cancer
In his documentary he insisted that he’s doing all that he can to get through his cancer fight as best as possible.
“A lot of these procedures I’m having and news that I’m getting are familiar, and I don’t know if that makes it less scary or more scary going through it myself. It’s hard to reenact things that you’ve seen your loved ones go through and then have to do them yourself. It’s pretty daunting sometimes,” he added.
Walker revealed his cancer had spread to his lungs, leading to surgery and a stage 4 diagnosis, but doctors later determined there was no cancer in his lungs—the treatment had worked and it had not actually spread.
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After recalling how his mom thinks of his cancer-free news as “miracle,” he added, “Whether it was a medical miracle … or a real miracle .. or whatever … It feels like a miracle to me because I’m cancer free.”
Understanding & Treating Colorectal Cancer
Colon cancer is a type of cancer that affects your large intestine (colon) or the end of your intestine (rectum). Your doctor might call this type of cancer colorectal 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 a full-blown cancer, according to SurvivorNet experts. If you get the recommended screenings, your doctor will have time to remove any polyps that form, before they can cause problems.
While experts don’t know exactly what causes colon cancer, they do point to certain risk factors, such as diet, smoking tobacco, and drinking alcohol. Having a family history of colorectal cancer can also increase the risk.
Both men and women can get colon cancer. Overall, it is the third most common cancer in people of both genders in the United States. But it’s also very preventable, with the recommended screenings.
Dr. Heather Yeo, colorectal surgeon at Weill Cornell Medicine, wants to remind people how far the treatment of this disease has come.
“One of the most exciting things about my job is that we’ve made a lot of progress on treatment options,” Dr. Yeo said in a previous interview with SurvivorNet. “However … while they’re living longer, [patients] are still living with colon cancer.”
She explained that patients with stage I to III colon cancer typically need to undergo surgery.
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During surgery, the surgeon removes the section of the colon with the cancer, along with nearby lymph nodes — a procedure that’s known as a partial colectomy. Surgeons can perform it through an open incision, but increasingly it’s being done laparoscopically through several small incisions using specialized tools. Surgery is followed by chemotherapy to get rid of any cancer cells that might have been left behind.
Related: The Type of Colon Surgery Depends on the Location of the Tumor
After a partial colectomy, surgeons typically reconnect the two ends of the colon. But in some cases, the surgery creates enough of a disruption in the colon that it becomes difficult to have a normal bowel movement afterward. In that case, the surgeon will perform a procedure called a colostomy, creating a temporary or permanent opening through the belly through which stool can exit the body. Wastes collect in a pouch worn on the outside of the abdomen, called an ostomy bag.
“A colostomy or an ostomy, is taking the bowel and attaching it to the skin so the bowel movement would go into a bag, rather than out the anus and rectum,” Dr. Daniel Labow, chief of surgical oncology at Mount Sinai Health System, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview.
Colostomy sounds much worse than it is. “Once you get over the psychosocial effects, you can lead a totally normal life,” Dr. Labow says. “It’s not painful. It’s just getting used to a different way.”
The Spike in Colon Cancer Cases in Young Adults
The average age people are diagnosed with colon cancer is 68 for men and 72 for women, according to the American Cancer Society.
However, 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 that the proportion of cases in people younger than 55 “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 more significant 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. Yeo explained.
“It is likely a combination of factors, including diet and genetics as well as access to care and some environmental factors.”
WATCH: How Doctors Look for Polyps.
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 is used to examine the colon and rectum. If no polyps are discovered, the following screening won’t be needed for ten years.
“We know that colon cancers can be prevented when polyps are found early,” Dr. Yeo told SurvivorNet. “Lowering the screening age helps somewhat with this, but access to care is a real problem,” Yeo added.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) lowered the recommended initial age for a colorectal screening from 50 to 45 in 2021.
The American Cancer Society had recommended the same change in 2018. Since then, the American Gastroenterological Association and the U.S. Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer have also supported lowering the recommended starting age.
Pushing For A Correct Diagnosis
When it comes to your health, be a little pushy. You know your body better than anyone else. When you see a doctor for a problem, don’t hesitate to make sure that your question is fully answered and that you are comfortable with the plan moving forward. From a doctor’s perspective, every problem should have a diagnosis, a treatment, a plan for follow-up, and a plan for what happens next if the treatment doesn’t work.
As a patient, if you don’t feel like each of these four things has been accomplished, just ask! Even if it requires multiple visits or seeing additional providers for a second opinion, always be your own advocate.
The Importance of Being Your Own Advocate
Dr. Zuri Murrell, director of the Cedars-Sinai Colorectal Cancer Center, previously told SurvivorNet that healthcare guidelines are meant to do the right thing for the largest number of people while using the fewest resources.
“The truth is you have to be in tune with your body, and you realize that you are not the statistic,” he said.
Dr. Murrell told SurvivorNet that not every patient will “fit into the mold,” so it’s important to educate yourself and be your own health care advocate.
“Every appointment you leave as a patient, there should be a plan for what the doc is going to do for you, and if that doesn’t work, what the next plan is,” Dr. Murrell advised. “And I think that that’s totally fair. And me as a health professional that’s what I do for all of my patients.”
Questions To Ask Your Doctor
If you have a cancer screening coming up or have recently had one, you may have questions you want answered. SurvivorNet’s proprietary AI tool “My Health Questions” is designed specifically for patients and caregivers.
WATCH: How One Cancer Survivor and Her Sister Used “My Health Questions” to Navigate Care
This powerful resource is embedded across the SurvivorNet website and delivers structured responses grounded in clinical guidelines and medically reviewed research to help people better understand their treatment options and feel more confident navigating care.
My Health Questions can also help patients come up with useful questions ahead of their next appointment.
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Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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