Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung, who is in his 50s, once revealed to the media that he had an intestinal polyp detected during a colon examination and had it surgically removed. Afterwards, he confessed that his father and grandmother both had cancer, so he was glad that it was discovered in time and did not cause any lesions. The relationship between intestinal polyp and cancer Intestinal polyp is actually a raised lesion on the surface of intestinal mucosa, commonly known as a lump of flesh growing in the intestinal canal. Small bumps are called polyps, and when they grow to a certain level, they are called adenomas, which may become cancerous if they continue to develop. Colon cancer and intestinal polyps are closely related because most colon polyps grow in the rectum and sigmoid colon, where colon cancer also grows. From the pathological point of view, the main types of polyps are adenomatous polyps, inflammatory polyps and hyperplastic polyps, and most colon cancers are transformed from intestinal polyps, among which adenomatous polyps have a relatively higher chance of becoming cancerous. Benefits of early detection of intestinal polyps Intestinal polyps are easily overlooked because they generally have no clinical symptoms, and only a small percentage of patients with intestinal polyps have abnormalities such as blood in stool, mucus stool and abdominal pain, and these symptoms often lack specificity, so to confirm the diagnosis of intestinal polyps, we have to rely on colonoscopy and other instruments. Early diagnosis of intestinal polyps is very important. Studies have found that timely treatment can reduce the incidence of colon cancer by 70% to 90%. Who needs to be checked as soon as possible? The following high-risk groups need special attention: people who have colon cancer or colon polyps in their family; people who eat high fat, high animal protein, low fiber and fried food for a long time; people who are older than 50 years old. In addition, the longer you sit, the higher the risk of developing intestinal polyps. It is recommended that these types of people should undergo annual e-colonoscopy, anal finger examination and fecal occult blood examination in order to detect colon adenomas with cancerous tendency in time. How to prevent intestinal polyps? We should also do a good job of prevention in life, reduce sedentary, eat less high-fat food, eat more fresh fruits and vegetables and coarse fiber food, and exercise for half an hour every day.