According to statistics, the incidence rate of colorectal cancer has been “increasing” year after year, with about 130,000 to 160,000 new cases and 60,000 to 90,000 deaths each year, and it is mostly found in large and medium-sized cities. The current colorectal cancer disease in China is not very optimistic. Let us analyze the characteristics of colorectal cancer in China according to the available scientific data, so as to answer three questions for readers: What is colorectal cancer? Where does it come from? What should we do?
The age of incidence in China is more than 10 years earlier than that in the United States
People have to eat three meals a day, and if there is food in, there must be food out, but the cancer that comes from eating also has to be taken seriously. Colorectal Cancer is a collective term for all cancers of the intestine, including the ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon, sigmoid colon and rectum. According to its nature, the American Cancer Society classifies colorectal cancer into adenocarcinoma (95%), carcinoid tumor, mesenchymal cancer, lymphoma, and sarcoma. In the United States, colorectal cancer is the second leading cancer killer with a five-year survival rate of 64.7 percent.
How to see the cancer data of the population?
1. Incidence rate, generally using the number of people in 100,000 people, the incidence rate of cancer in elderly people increases rapidly with age. It is not good to compare two groups of people with large difference in life expectancy, but it can also be judged by analyzing the incidence rates of different age groups.
2. The age of diagnosis of a particular cancer in the population, which is the most important in the pathogenesis of cancer. According to the National Cancer Institute, the incidence rate of colorectal cancer in 1992 was 56.7/100,000 people, and in 2014 it was about 45.6/100,000 people, a decrease of 11.1%. Ninety percent of new cases are now diagnosed at an age over 50, and the median age of diagnosis (MADD) is 69. According to the latest data from the National Cancer Center of China, the national incidence rate of malignant tumors is 250.28 per 100,000 people.
Not considering the differences in colon cancer screening rates and life expectancy between the two countries, the age of onset of colorectal cancer in the Chinese population is at least 10 years earlier compared to the US population! Although this article is data from a single research institution and the patients are only from the Guangxi region, the 3369 cases still provide a sufficient sample size of different age groups to analyze and compare.
Colorectal cancer etiology
According to the American Cancer Society, colorectal cancer is the cancer most closely associated with lifestyle, which means that one can significantly reduce risk factors and prevent colorectal cancer through one’s own efforts to adopt good lifestyle habits.
Good lifestyle habits here mainly refer to dietary structure: for example, red meat such as beef, pork, lamb and processed meat such as hot dogs, luncheon meat and bacon are high risk factors for bowel cancer; on the contrary, vegetables, fruits and whole grains can reduce the risk of bowel cancer. In addition, cooking methods are also important, and harmful chemicals from high-temperature frying and grilling are also risk factors. Of course, lifestyle also includes lack of exercise, obesity, smoking, alcoholism, etc. Increasing age, Crohn’s disease (restrictive enteritis), and genetic factors such as familial multiple intestinal polyps can also increase the risk of the disease.
However, there are many other issues to think about, such as the effects of pollutants in food and air, changes in intestinal flora due to changes in food structure, and the effects of heavy use of antibiotics on intestinal flora. All these changes may induce chronic inflammation of the colorectum, which in turn can cause cancer. There is evidence that there is a positive correlation between some intestinal flora and the development of cancer.
Once we know the causes, we can also take corresponding measures to prevent and avoid them.
1. Promote a healthy lifestyle and raise your awareness of cancer prevention. In particular, we suggest readers to resist the temptation of various “food”, learn to read nutrition labels and know how to eat properly.
2. Achieve the purpose of early diagnosis and treatment through screening. Screening should not be arbitrary and should be based on scientific evidence.
Colorectal cancer generally develops slowly, usually starting with the appearance of polyps in the lining of the intestine, and it takes about 10 years to form. For cancer screening, a country’s health authority will set guidelines based on the financial resources of the country, and the economic acceptability of the population.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is the target of this recommended bowel cancer screening for the population: those over 50 years of age or those at high risk.
People at high risk for colorectal cancer are
1. you have a close relative with colorectal cancer.
2. you have inflammatory bowel disease.
3. you have a genetic syndrome, such as familial adenomatous polyp (FAP).
High risk does not mean you will definitely get it, but it is necessary to screen in advance or increase the number of screenings by
1. once a year fecal blood test.
2.Sigmoidoscopy once every five years
3, once every ten years colonoscopy.
However, based on the data seen above, it is strongly recommended that the Chinese population advance the age of general screening for colorectal cancer to 40 years. Here, the author also calls on research institutions to analyze the causes and actively guide the public to prevent cancer, and also calls on the government and authoritative health institutions to formulate policies to prevent various environmental pollution and reduce social medical costs and pressure.