What Central Minnesotans Need to Know About Colon Cancer

March is colon cancer awareness month.  To learn more about colon cancer I was joined by Dr. Daniel Kraft from CentraCare on WJON's Health Matters program.  Dr. Kraft is a Gastroenterologist who's been with CentraCare for 18 years.  He says any cell in the colon can become cancerous but most don't.  Dr. Kraft explains the difference between colon cancer and rectal cancer is how it is treated.  He says all colon or rectal cancers start out as polyps in the colon. Dr. Kraft says some of these polyps become cancerous.

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Dr. Kraft says it is not uncommon for doctors to discover polyps in the colon during a colonoscopy screening process.  If polyps are detected, they are removed whether they are cancerous or not.  Dr. Kraft indicates CentraCare will inform patients if polyps are removed and whether they were cancerous or not after a colonoscopy.  He says colonoscopies are still the gold standard in regards to colon cancer screening.  Dr. Kraft indicates Cologuard cancer screening is better than nothing but colonoscopies are still the best option.  He says if something is detected in the Cologuard screening process a colonoscopy would be recommended.

Dr. Kraft says a colonoscopy is recommended for everyone starting at 45 years of age and earlier if colon cancer runs in the family.  He says colon cancer is slightly more likely in men than women and it does run in families.  Dr. Kraft says the amount of colon cancer cases in the United States has decreased in the older population due to increased screening efforts.  He says it has increased in the age group 40-49.

Symptoms of colon cancer typically doesn't start until the cancer has already spread.  Dr. Kraft indicates blood in the stool and pain are symptoms.  Risk factors include age, family history, race, obesity, smoking, alcohol use, diabetes, consumption of red meat and low fiber diets.  Dr. Kraft says native Americans have a higher rate of colon cancer than other races.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Dr. Kraft, it is available below.