Cancer Diary: 🌈 The Color Wheel of Cancer Poop
The color of poop - a visual guide to the quiet warnings our bodies send
🟥 Red
Possible cancers:
• Colon cancer
• Rectal cancer
• Anal cancer
Why it happens:
Fresh blood mixes with stool when tumors in the lower GI tract bleed.
Clue: Blood is on the stool or in the toilet bowl, not digested into it.
⚫ Black / Tarry
Possible cancers:
• Stomach cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Small intestine tumors
Why it happens:
Blood from higher up in the GI tract gets digested, turning stool black and sticky.
Clue: Looks like coffee grounds mixed with tar.
🟤 Dark Brown / Maroon
Possible cancers:
• Right‑sided colon cancer
• Small bowel tumors
Why it happens:
Slow bleeding higher in the colon darkens stool without turning it fully black.
Clue: Often overlooked because it still “looks like poop.”
🟡 Yellow / Greasy / Floating
Possible cancers:
• Pancreatic cancer
• Ampullary cancer
Why it happens:
Tumors block pancreatic enzymes → fat isn’t digested → stool becomes oily, pale, and buoyant.
Clue: Leaves a film in the toilet bowl.
🟫 Pale Brown / Putty‑Colored
Possible cancers:
• Pancreatic cancer
• Bile duct cancer (cholangiocarcinoma)
• Gallbladder cancer
Why it happens:
Bile can’t reach the intestine, so stool loses its normal brown pigment.
Clue: Often paired with dark urine and itching.
⬜ White / Clay‑Colored
Possible cancers:
• Liver cancer
• Bile duct cancer
Why it happens:
Severe bile obstruction.
Clue: This is a medical red flag—rare, but urgent.
🟧 Orange
Possible cancers:
Not typically cancer-specific, but…
Can appear in:
• Pancreatic cancer (fat malabsorption)
• Liver/bile duct cancers (altered bile flow)
Why it happens:
Changes in bile or fat digestion can shift stool toward orange.
Clue: Usually paired with other symptoms.
🟩 Green
Possible cancers:
Not a classic cancer sign on its own.
But:
• Can appear when food moves too quickly through the gut due to tumors causing partial obstruction.
Why it happens:
Bile doesn’t have time to break down fully.
Clue: More about speed than color.
For other Cancer Diary posts, click HERE.
Blog editor's note: As a memorial to Carl, and simply because it is truly needed, MSI Press is now hosting a web page, Carl's Cancer Compendium, as a one-stop starting point for all things cancer, to make it easier for those with cancer to find answers to questions that can otherwise take hours to track down on the Internet and/or from professionals. The CCC is expanded and updated weekly. As part of this effort, each week, on Monday, this blog will carry an informative, cancer-related story -- and be open to guest posts: Cancer Diary.
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