Zhang, 58, has been troubled by “hemorrhoids” for a long time, and he was diagnosed with rectal cancer in the Department of Proctology after using various medications to no avail. After careful preoperative preparation, the medical staff of the Department of Proctology performed anal preservation surgery for the patient, who recovered quickly after the surgery. Hemorrhoids and rectal cancer are quite different from each other in terms of etiology, pathology, treatment and prognosis. But why do some people have the illusion that hemorrhoids can become rectal cancer? The reason is that more than 90% of rectal cancer cases are misdiagnosed as hemorrhoids in the initial stage. Hemorrhoid is a common clinical rectal and anal disease, mainly seen in adults, and its incidence increases with age. The clinical manifestations of hemorrhoids are fresh blood during stool or a lump prolapsing from the anus. Depending on where it occurs, there are external and internal hemorrhoids. Mild hemorrhoids do not require special treatment and are not a direct threat to a person’s life and health. Rectal cancer is a malignant tumor with a high incidence in the gastrointestinal tract, and its incidence has increased sharply in recent years. It occupies the third and fourth position among malignant tumors. If not diagnosed and treated early, it can be life-threatening. Rectal cancer is easily misdiagnosed as hemorrhoids at the early stage, and such misdiagnosis is either self-misdiagnosis of patients or speculation of medical personnel. The reason for the high misdiagnosis rate is that there are many similarities between the clinical manifestations of rectal cancer and hemorrhoids, such as blood in stool and increased frequency of stool. In fact, early detection of rectal cancer is entirely possible as long as patients are a little alert to it. If it can be detected early, the treatment effect of rectal cancer is very good. After examination, it was found that among them, early rectal cancer was treated well and got a chance to be cured. This shows that early detection of rectal cancer is not difficult as long as patients pay attention to it. Distinguishing hemorrhoids from rectal cancer can be achieved clinically with some simple examinations, and the cost spent is not much, such as an anal finger examination only costs $5, and a fiberoptic sigmoidoscopy only costs more than $100. In order to detect rectal cancer at an early stage, it is recommended to pay attention to the following aspects in life: 1. Change in bowel habit: this is the earliest and most common symptom of rectal cancer. Due to the stimulation of cancer, patients can have more stools without obvious reasons in a short period of time. The cancer can block the rectal outlet, causing constipation, thin or deformed stools, abdominal distension and other symptoms. 2.Change of stool characteristics: 80%-90% of rectal cancer patients have diluted stool, blood in stool, blood is bright red or dark red, often mixed with mucus or pus. Sometimes the detached tumor tissues can be seen in the stool, but this is often not the early stage. 3. Early consultation: Once patients find the above symptoms, they should immediately go to hospital for examination. When consulting the doctor, they should pay attention not to easily believe the conclusion drawn by the doctor without examination, such as hemorrhoids or bacillary dysentery. If the doctor does not do the appropriate examination, the patient may wish to request the examination himself. Generally speaking, rectal finger examination can detect more than 75% of rectal cancers, and simple sigmoidoscopy can detect almost all rectal cancers. 4. It should be taken seriously: there are many patients who may be shy of examination or afraid of the pain brought by examination and take the list after the doctor prescribes the examination without doing it, thus delaying the time of early detection, and there are many such examples in the clinic. Many people have paid the price of their lives as a result. It is very important to differentiate hemorrhoids from rectal cancer. Hemorrhoids affect patients’ quality of life, while rectal cancer directly endangers patients’ lives, and domestic rectal cancer patients are often diagnosed at an advanced stage with poor prognosis. The five-year survival rate of early rectal cancer surgical treatment is more than 98%, and rectal cancer is completely preventable and curable. Therefore, timely examination, early diagnosis and standardized treatment of anal diseases are crucial for patients.