1. What is colon cancer?
Cancer is a disease which can affect cells from all organs. The colon cancer affects the cells of the colon, determining them to proliferate in an uncontrollable way. This mass of abnormal cells will form a tumor inside the colon. The cancer of the intestine is quite frequent and two thirds of this type of cancer is situated in the colon.
2. Who can develop colon cancer?
Upon hearing the diagnosis of colon cancer, a set of mixed emotions can flow that can make you feel overwhelmed and stress. You are pressed into a situation where everything suddenly seems uncertain. Forced to look over future financial concerns, the shock of knowing your condition can put you to a breaking point.
The good news is, despite such worrying circumstances, this is a normal reaction of a cancer patient. The better news is the prospect of dealing with cancer should not discourage you to defeat the disease. There are a slew of success stories that will encourage you to face your situation with courage and joy.
Symptoms of colon cancer do not appear in all the patients when the disease is in an early stage but only after it has advanced in gravity. This is why doctors recommend that after a certain age people should ask for screenings regularly.
Colorectal cancer can give a lot of symptoms but they all match other diseases too like: inflammatory bowel disease, diverticulosis, and irritable bowel syndrome. All these diseases can be treated but they first must be diagnosed in order to apply a right treatment.
The part of the large intestine that joins the small intestine is called the caecum. Directly above the anus is a short length of large intestine - 12-15cm long - called the rectum. The colon extends from caecum to the rectum and is divided into 4 parts: the ascending colon, which rises upwards from the caecum; the transverse colon, which runs across the body from right to left; the descending colon, which sweeps downwards; and a relatively short section called the sigmoid colon, which leads to the rectum.
On 25 May 2007, I received an e-mail. The writer wanted me to help her sister-in-law, Jane (not real name), a thirty-nine-year old female who was diagnosed with colon cancer. She had undergone a surgery to remove a tumor, about the size of an orange, from her bowels. The cancer was probably at Stage 3 or 4. After the surgery, Jane underwent twelve cycles of chemotherapy over a six-month period. The writer wrote: “we did try to convince her to take your herbs by showing her some of your testimonials and documentation while she was undergoing chemotherapy. However, she was not convinced about herbs.”