MSI Press Blog

  March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. Being aware of the dangers of colon cancer, how widespread it is, and how fairly easily it can be identified and treated at early states is important to everyone's long-term health because colorectal cancer can attack anyone. Here is a guide that can help: Guide to Colorectal Cancer Carl Leaver for whom the CCC is named and maintained died of cancer of unknown primary. How oncologist believed (no evidence when it comes to CUP) that the cancer started in the colon.  I, his wife and MSI Press LLC managing editor, was found cancerous polyps through a home colon cancer test, ordered because of an observed change in bowel behavior, that led to a much-earlier-than-planned follow-up colonoscopy (5 years instead of 7-10 years after the first colonoscopy that had yielded no concerns). That led to several siblings revealing the same state and that they were on short-term follow-up colonoscopy schedules. Carl blew off his scheduled c...

  Aging brings many questions about medical care, and colonoscopies are no exception. When should you start them? When should you stop? The answers aren’t as straightforward as you might think, especially when family history, anesthesia risks, and individual health concerns come into play. When to Start and Why? For most people, the recommended age to begin screening for colorectal cancer is 45 (lowered from 50 in recent years due to increasing cases in younger adults). However, if you have a strong family history—like my siblings and I, who all have had pre-cancerous polyps found at each colonoscopy—you may need to start even earlier. Doctors recommend earlier and more frequent screenings if you have: A family history of colorectal cancer or pre-cancerous polyps Certain genetic conditions like Lynch Syndrome A history of inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s or ulcerative colitis) When to Stop and Why? Many doctors advise stopping colonoscopies at 75 —but is that t...

  (photo from cancer study website) Today is the observation of a combined holiday: Columbus Day and Indigenouse Peoples Day. In observance of this done, focusing on the second holiday, Cancer Diary is sharing some important dasa from a study of cancer among indigenous people. To cut to the chase, here are the conclusions: American Indian and Alaska Native people were more likely to get liver, stomach, kidney, lung, colorectal, and female breast cancers than White people in most regions. Compared to White men, Native American men had higher rates of getting liver, stomach, kidney, colorectal, and lung cancer and myeloma. Compared to White women, Native American women had higher rates of getting liver, stomach, kidney, colorectal, and cervical cancer. Native American men were more likely to get cancer than Native American women. The difference ranged from 23% more likely for lung cancer to 129% more likely for liver cancer. The biggest differences in cancer rates between Native Amer...

    For years, bowel cancer was framed as an “older person’s disease,” something that happened after decades of cellular wear‑and‑tear. But that story no longer fits the data. Gen Z and younger millennials are being diagnosed with colorectal cancer at rates that would have shocked doctors twenty years ago. Even more troubling: their symptoms are often dismissed — by themselves, by urgent care, even by specialists — until the cancer is advanced. This isn’t a moral failure. It’s a systems failure. And a cultural one. The Symptoms Gen Z Doesn’t Recognize as Cancer Younger adults tend to normalize or explain away symptoms that, in an older patient, would immediately trigger a colonoscopy. The most commonly missed signs include: Rectal bleeding Often blamed on hemorrhoids, constipation, or “sitting too long.” Changes in stool shape Pencil‑thin, ribbon‑like, or consistently narrow stool can signal a tumor narrowing the passageway. Persistent bloating or cramping Written of...

   54-year old Jason Maman put off checking out the reasons for his stomach pain for a year. It turned out to be stage 3 colon cancer. Read the article here .  This is a bit different from the delayed diagnosis described in last week's (May 13) Cancer Diary blog post. In that case, the patient knew something was wrong; it took too long for doctors to take her seriously and to get an accurate diagnosis. Carl , too, put off getting a diagnosis for something he thought was just stomach pain . He consulted "wisely" (right?) with our daughter who had had her gall bladder removed years earlier when he thought it might be his gall bladder. He decided to just monitor it for a while and see if it got worse. He adapted his food intake for gall bladder management. It did not work. To his defense, this occurred as covid was winding down, and doctors in our area were not seeing patients in their offices, just telehealth -- and his long-term doctor had left when the pandemic started to...

  For years, alcohol carried a kind of health halo — especially red wine. But modern cancer research has stripped away the romance and left us with a clear, uncomfortable truth: alcohol is a carcinogen , full stop. Not just hard liquor. Not just “heavy drinking.” Any drink containing ethanol — beer, wine, cocktails — increases cancer risk. Why alcohol raises cancer risk When the body breaks down alcohol, it produces acetaldehyde , a toxic compound that: damages DNA interferes with DNA repair promotes inflammation disrupts hormone regulation (especially estrogen) Over time, these changes increase the likelihood that damaged cells will become cancerous. Which cancers are linked to alcohol? The list is longer than most people realize. Strong evidence connects alcohol to: Breast cancer (even at low levels) Colorectal cancer Liver cancer Esophageal cancer Head and neck cancers Stomach cancer (emerging evidence) There is no safe threshold . Even one drink a day nudges...