Modern Health Observation

How is it diagnosed?

The clinical history, with the description of symptoms or family history is always essential in suspected colon cancer. Among the tests to be performed, colonoscopy is the diagnostic method of choice, is the most sensitive and specific, and allows for biopsy and resection of polyps.

Other tests are useful in specific cases, such as barium enema to study intestinal areas inaccessible by colonoscopy, or CT, which allows evaluating the presence of metastases or involvement of adjacent organs and glands. May also be necessary radiography, MRI or ultrasound to facilitate the identification of metastases in certain areas.

The study of fecal occult blood test is a rapid, first line, before the suspected diagnosis of possible colon cancer, and the study of tumor markers in the blood, which have a prognostic value or to suspect the persistence of tumor after surgery.

How is it treated?

Surgical treatment with removal of the tumor, is the only curative treatment. The extent of the area to remove depends on the degree of progress or extent of the tumor, since the removal of a polyp if the cancer does not invade the intestinal mucosa yet to surgical resection of the colon. In very advanced tumors and may be necessary to complement surgical treatment with chemotherapy.

What is your prognosis, or how it will evolve after your diagnosis?

The main prognostic factor is the degree of progress and invasion of tumor at the time of diagnosis. Other prognostic factors are: the degree of involvement of lymph nodes, the presence or absence of metastasis, and intestinal obstruction or perforation, among others.

At present, the prognosis of life in patients with colon cancer is good, and great quality of life once the surgery. The 5-year survival in stage I of invasion is 90% and in stage II of invasion over 70%.