Every year, more than 135,000 Americans are diagnosed with colon cancer, and over 50,000 die from the disease. At Sonoran Surgical in Chandler, Arizona, Aalok Sahai, MD, and Rohit K. Sahai, MD, diagnose and treat colon cancer. If you have a family or personal history of colon cancer, call or schedule an appointment online today for a colon cancer screening.

Colon Cancer Q & A

What are the signs of colon cancer?

Colon cancer usually develops from adenomatous polyps in your large intestine. The condition may develop slowly or rapidly and usually causes symptoms including:

• A change in your bowel movement habits
• A change in the consistency of your stools such as diarrhea that lasts for four weeks or more
• Blood in your stool or rectal bleeding
• Feeling like your bowel doesn’t empty completely
• Weakness and fatigue
• Unexplained weight loss

It’s also possible that colon cancer can develop without causing any noticeable symptoms. If you have a family history of colorectal cancer, you should start having colon cancer screenings earlier than the recommended age of 50.

How is colon cancer diagnosed?

You should start to have colon cancer screenings around the age of 50 unless you have an increased risk of colon cancer. Your doctor assesses your risk and provides customized advice on how frequently you should have colorectal cancer screenings. For example, if you have little to no chance of colon cancer, you may only need to have a colon cancer screening every 10 years.

Some of the tests used to screen for colon cancer include:

• Colonoscopy
• Flexible sigmoidoscopy
• CT scans
• Stool sample tests
• Blood tests

If you’re concerned about colon cancer, talk to your doctor about scheduling a screening today.

How is colon cancer treated?

The doctors at Sonoran Surgical provide expert, customized surgical treatments for colon cancer. For example, if your colonoscopy shows polyps in your large intestine, they can remove the polyps during your colonoscopy.

However, if you have a more advanced stage of colon cancer, your surgeon can surgically remove the tumor or perform a partial colectomy to remove the affected part of your large intestine.

Depending on your procedure, your surgeon may be able to reconnect your large intestine to allow you to continue to pass waste normally, or he may install a colostomy bag to funnel your solid waste out of an opening in your body.

If you’re concerned about colon cancer or have been diagnosed with colon cancer and are looking for an expert surgeon, call Sonoran Surgical or schedule a consultation online today.