Know Your Colon Cancer

Colorectal Cancer or known as Ca. Colon or Bowel Cancer is a form of malignancy that occurs in the colon, rectum, and appendix (appendectomy). In developed countries, cancer is ranked the third most common, and a leading cause of death in the western world. Necessary to find an action called a colonoscopy, whereas for treatment is surgery followed by chemotherapy.

At first the symptoms are not obvious, such as weight loss (as a common symptom of malignancy), and fatigue is not clear why. After a few time before other symptoms appear related to the presence of a significant size of the tumor in the colon. The closer the location of the tumor with anal symptoms usually increase. When we talk about the symptoms of colon tumors, the symptoms are divided into three, namely the local symptoms, general symptoms, and symptoms spread (metastasis).

Local symptoms are:
Change in bowel habits
Changes in stool frequency, reduced (constipation) or grow (diarrhea)
Sensation of incomplete bowel movement such as, (still want but can not get out) and change in diameter as well as the size of the stool (feces). Both are the hallmark of colorectal cancer
Change the physical appearance of dirt / feces
Stool mixed with blood or blood out of a landfill during defecation
Stool mixed with mucus
Black stools, usually associated with the occurrence of bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract
Arising out of pain accompanied by nausea and vomiting during bowel movements, caused by blockage of sewage by the tumor mass
A lump in the abdomen that may be felt by people
Other symptoms arise in the vicinity of the tumor, because cancer can grow about organ and tissue around the tumor, such as bladder (blood in urine arise, arise the air bubbles, etc.), vagina (vaginal discharge that smells, appears excessive mucus, etc. ). These symptoms occur later, showed greater and more extensive tumor spread

The most common symptoms are:

Weight loss for no apparent reason (this is the most common symptom in all types of malignancy)
Loss of appetite
Anemia, the patient was pale
Often feel tired
Sometimes experience sensations such as floating

Symptoms spread is:


The spread to the liver, causing symptoms:
Patients appear yellow
Abdominal pain, more often in the upper right, in the vicinity of the liver
Enlargement of the liver, usually seen in a physical examination by a physician
The other symptoms that arise are called paraneoplastic, associated with increased blood viscosity due to the spread of cancer.

Depth / Staging / Stage Colon Cancer

There are several types of colon cancer staging classification, there TNM classification, Dukes classification, but which I will describe the classification is as follows (similar to the Dukes classification):
Stage 1: Cancer occurs in the colon wall
Stage 2: The cancer has spread to the muscle layer of the colon
Stage 3: The cancer has spread to lymph glands
Stage 4: The cancer has spread to other organs


Risk Factors
Anyone can get cancer of the colon? Here are the factors that increase a person's risk of colon cancer:
A. Of age. The risk increases with age. Most cases occur in the age of 60-70 s, and rarely under the age of 50 unless there is a family history of colon cancer is.

2. The presence of polyps in the colon, particularly adenomatous polyp type. With removal of polyps at the time found also reduce the risk of colon cancer later in life.

3. History of cancer. Someone who had been diagnosed with or treated for colon cancer are at risk for colon cancer later in life. Women who have ovarian cancer (ovarian), uterine cancer, and breast cancer have a greater risk for colorectal cancer.

4. Heredity:
a. History of colon cancer, especially in the immediate family.
b. Disease FAP (Familial adenomatous polyposis) - familial adenomatous polyps (in families); have 100% risk for colorectal cancer occurs before age 40 years, if not treated.
c. Other diseases in the family, such as HNPCC (Hereditary Non-polyposis Colorectal Cancer) - non colorectal cancer polyps in families, or Lynch syndrome

5 Diseases of colitis (inflammation of the colon) ulcerative untreated.

6. Smoking habits. Smokers have a much greater risk for colorectal cancer than nonsmokers.

7. Eating habits. Once in meticulous that many meat eating habits and a little fruit, vegetables, and fish also increase the risk of colorectal cancer.

8. Less active. People who are more physically active had a lower risk for colorectal cancer is formed.

9. Inveksi Virus. Certain viruses such as HPV (Human Papilloma Virus) that contribute to the occurrence of colorectal cancer.

How to detect it?

Colorectal cancer can take many years to develop, so early detection is very influential on the possibility of recovery. If you are someone who is at risk, you'll want to do a screening. Examination are:
A. Rectal examination with a finger (Digital Rectal Exam), in which the doctor examines the state of the wall of the rectum as far as possible with your fingers; these checks do not always find any abnormality, particularly colon cancer that occurs in the course and has not spread to the rectum.
2. Examination of blood in the stool.
3. Endoscopy. This examination is very useful because in addition to seeing the state of the colon can also act, for example when finding polyps endoscopy can pick it up at once and then do a biopsy.
4. Examination by double contrast barium enema.
5. Virtual Colonoscopy.
6. CAT Scan.
7. Examination of CEA levels (carcinogens Embryonic Antigent) of blood.
8. Whole-body PET Scan Imaging. While this is the most accurate diagnostic tests for the detection of recurrent colorectal cancer (which comes back).
9. Fecal DNA testing.

What about Treatment?

Patient care depends on the level of staging the cancer itself. Therapy will be much easier if the cancer is found at an early stage. Cancer cure rates of stage 1 and 2 are still very good. But if the cancer is found in the advanced stage, or is found at an early stage and is not treated, it is likely recovery would be much more difficult.
Among the therapeutic options for patients, surgery option is still ranked first, with supported by chemotherapy and / or radiotherapy (may be required).

Surgery

This action is divided into Curative, Palliative, bypass, fecal diversion, and Open-and-close. Curative Surgery is done if the tumor was found in a localized area. The point is to remove the affected part of the tumor and its surroundings. In this situation it may take an action called TME (total mesorectal Excision), which is an act of throwing the gut in significant numbers. As a result, both ends of the intestine is left to be sewn back. Usually in this situation required a colostomy bag, so that dirt can be removed through the large intestine through other channels. This option is not a good option but it is a necessary step to stay alive, considering the patient's impossible not to eat so that the intestine is also impossible not to charge food / feces, while there are parts that need healing. What and how the continuation of the colostomy is conditional and individual, each patient has different circumstances so that the handling is not the same.

Palliative Surgery is done in the case of tumor spread widely, with the aim to avoid throwing the primary tumor-induced death of patients with the primary tumor. Sometimes this action is supported chemotherapy could save lives. If the tumor has spread to vital organs of the surgery was technically difficult, so the doctor may choose to bypass surgical technique or fecal diversion (transfer of stool) through the hole. The final choice in the worst condition is an open-and-close, in which doctors open the areas of operations, then the de facto look at the situation is such that it is impossible to do anything more or actions to be taken it does not benefit the patient, then in cover. This action seems to have never done it again now that are already widely available laparoscopic and advanced radiography to detect the presence and condition of cancer long before the necessary surgery.

Non-Surgical Therapy

Chemotherapy is done as an act to reduce the occurrence of metastasis (spread), tumor cell growth, shrink in size, or slow growth. Radiotherapy is rarely used for colon cancer because it has side effects and is difficult to be fired to a specific part of the colon. Radiotherapy more frequently in rectal cancer only. Immunotherapy is being developed as adjunctive therapy for colorectal cancer. Other therapies that have been tested and proved to be very promising vaccine therapy. Discovered in November 2006 and a branded TroVax vaccine proven effective against various cancers. The vaccine works by increasing the patient's immune system to fight the disease. The testing phase is currently targeted for kidney cancer and is scheduled for colon cancer. Other therapies are treatments aimed to overcome the metastases (tumor spread).
Well apart from the above non-surgical therapy, which is equally important is the Supportive Therapy. Diagnosis of cancer is often caused a huge influence on the psyche of the sufferer. Hence the drive from the hospital, doctor, husband / wife, relatives, family, social support group is very important for the sufferer.

An advice:
This section is from me personally, if you or your family is a colon cancer patient, my suggestion is as follows:

A. Do not delay your treatment, just in case you are still included in the category of early stages.
2. Do not despair, in every difficulty there is always a way out.
3. Do not linger trying alternative therapies and thwart a proven medical therapy.
4. I personally believe habbatus Seed (black cumin) as adjunctive therapy for any therapy, especially for cancer issues. Since the first Prophet said: "Verily habbatus Seed is the cure for all diseases except death% u2026 ', and I believe in it. Scientists recently discovered that habbatus brothers have a potent anti-cancer effects