What are the Risk Factors for Colon Cancer

Colon cancer affects a lot of people each year. It goes beyond being something that a single individual has to deal with alone, and affects the family and friends of the person that was diagnosed. One of the worst things about cancer is that most of the time it is easy to take preventative measures to keep it from happening, or preventative measures to catch it and deal with it in the early stages, before it becomes life threatening. There are a lot of easily identifiable risk factors for colon cancer that individuals should be aware of. These early warning signs can serve to get people the help they need before it turns into full blown cancer.

Family History

Cancer experts have proven links between some kinds of cancers and genetics. This can be both a blessing and a curse for people who have family histories of cancer related problems. The downside of the proven link between family genetics and cancers is that people who have a history of cancer in their family have an increased chance of developing cancer themselves at some point in their lives. On the upside, this can mean that individuals who are aware of their family history can take preventative measures, and do everything they can to protect themselves from progressing into the later stages of cancer.

By having a history of colon cancer in your family, it means that you are more at risk than other people for developing the illness. If you have a history of cancer within the family, then you should try to limit your other risk factors as much as possible. Also, consult a doctor to find other measures that you could potentially use to cut down on the possibility of developing colon cancer. Individuals with a family history must set up appointments for annual screenings that are used to detect polyps, which can be a precursor to colorectal cancer.

Lifestyle Factors

There are a lot of different lifestyle factors that can go into increasing a person’s risks for developing cancer of any sort, particularly colon cancer. For instance, men are more likely than women to develop polyps that could potentially lead to colon cancer, and obese individuals are more at risk than individuals at a healthy weight. Individuals that have diets high in fats and carbohydrates with little exercise increase their risks for colon cancer by a significant amount.

There are several other factors from a person’s life that can increase their risk of colon cancer. Smoking can introduce carcinogens into the body that go directly to the colon. Additionally tobacco seems to increase the size of polyps that are already present. Other factors that increase risks for colorectal cancer include diets low in fiber and folic acid, people who have diabetes, and the age of the individual since most reported cases of colon cancer are in individuals over 50 years old. Experts are also evaluating the effects of radiation exposure and are currently suggesting that radiation exposure should be limited as much as possible.