Speaking of blood in the stool , what do you think of?
Perhaps the first reaction of most people is hemorrhoids . It is true that blood in the stool is a typical symptom of hemorrhoids, but in fact, blood in the stool may also be a more dangerous and terrifying disease: intestinal cancer .
In life, whenever unexplained blood in the stool occurs, attention should be paid immediately. Whether it is bowel cancer or hemorrhoids, early detection and early treatment can avoid greater pain.
Six months ago, I received a doctor from a 48-year-old man who drives express delivery. Due to his work, he has been dealing with trucks for a long time. Especially during the peak season, when there are many express deliveries, he often sits in the truck for more than ten hours. Three meals a day are never regular, and sometimes I only eat one meal a day when I am busy.
Later, he discovered that there seemed to be something wrong with his stool. In the past, his stool would be formed, but now his stool could not be formed for a long time and was even a little soft.
After learning about this situation, his wife also persuaded him to go to the hospital. But when he thought of his two sons who were still studying at home, he was still reluctant to ask for leave for a check-up.
It wasn't until later that he discovered that his stool was mixed with blood that he panicked. Because he felt that blood in the stool must be hemorrhoids, and he would not be able to do this job if he had hemorrhoids. Until this moment, he still did not realize the seriousness of the problem.
Even when the doctor asked for a colonoscopy , he didn't take it seriously. It wasn't until the diagnosis report of colon cancer was placed in front of him and he looked at his crying wife that he realized that he had really missed the best opportunity for diagnosis and treatment...
Why is colon cancer so difficult to detect?
Data from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention show that colon cancer is the third most common cancer both globally and in China, and is one of the leading cancer causes of death.
As a malignant tumor, colon cancer is actually a typical disease of wealth. The occurrence of colon cancer is often related to our living conditions and dietary patterns. Especially in the past 10 years, the incidence rate of colon cancer has soared, increasing by a full 97.15%.
Like liver cancer , intestinal cancer is also very "cunning". There are basically no typical symptoms in the early stages, which makes people often ignore it. Only in the late stage, due to the deterioration of the condition, does intestinal cancer have certain clinical manifestations.
In addition, because colon does not have many pain-sensing nerves, nearly 80% of patients are already in the late stage when they are discovered. For advanced bowel cancer, the 5-year survival rate is very low, only 5-40%. Compared with the 95% 5-year survival rate of early-stage bowel cancer, this is really a world of difference. Therefore, it is of vital significance to detect bowel cancer as early as possible.
What is the relationship between bowel cancer and stool? How to detect early bowel cancer through changes in stool?
First of all, the colon has two functions. One is to absorb water from food, and the other is to store garbage. The garbage here refers to feces. It is precisely because of this that any problems in the colon will be revealed through stool.
The first thing is the change in the frequency of defecation. The most typical one is the increase in the frequency of defecation for no reason, and diarrhea and constipation appear alternately.
There is also a change in the shape of the stool. For example, the stool used to be shaped, but now the stool is often unformed, mucus appears, the shape becomes thinner, or there are fixed indentations, etc.
In addition, blood in the stool or black stool also needs attention. Although hemorrhoids can also cause blood in the stool, there are still certain differences between the blood in the stool caused by intestinal cancer and the blood in the stool caused by hemorrhoids. Hemorrhoids and bloody stools usually appear after straining to defecate, and are bright red in color and adhere to the surface of the feces.
Intestinal cancer has completely different blood in the stool. Blood will be mixed in the stool, and the color is usually dark red or black. Why is this so? Because when patients with bowel cancer defecate, the intestinal polyps will be damaged due to the extrusion of feces, and because some substances are absorbed or the iron ions in the blood are oxidized, the blood color will be darker.
Finally, there is an abnormal increase in the number of farts. What is an abnormal increase? For example, if you didn't fart much before, but now you fart frequently and have been doing so for a long time, and the farts still have a pungent odor, then you need to pay attention to it.
There are also some pains that may be signs of bowel cancer, such as swelling and pain in the anus. In fact, hemorrhoids also have this feeling, so this reference is not of much significance.
However, if you have unexplained abdominal distension and pain in the middle and lower abdomen, and this feeling becomes more and more obvious, and it evolves from paroxysmal to persistent, you should be alert.
How to prevent bowel cancer?
It is actually not difficult to prevent any disease before it appears, but it just so happens that many people are too lazy to do it, leaving them with regrets.
To prevent intestinal cancer, the first step is to eat more dietary fiber, because dietary fiber has an adsorption effect and can carry metabolic waste in the intestines and excrete it out of the body. Among dietary fibers, I prefer non-soluble dietary fibers, such as apple juice, orange juice, pineapple juice, watermelon juice, etc.
Of course, it is also possible to eat more fresh vegetables, fruits and whole grains.
Another thing is not to sit for a long time, even if you need to sit for a long time due to work reasons. It is still recommended that you get up and move for a while every hour you sit. Because sitting for a long time will affect the blood supply to the internal organs, thus affecting the peristalsis of the intestines and slowing down the discharge of metabolic waste in the intestines, this will really greatly increase the chance of suffering from intestinal cancer.
One last reminder, if you find something wrong with your body, you must go to the hospital for a check-up. Because most people in life do not have professional knowledge, it is difficult for them to determine what the problem is. Only through inspection with professional instruments can the problem be determined. Think about it, spending a few hundred yuan for an examination can detect problems at an early stage and nip bowel cancer in the "cradle". Isn't it cost-effective?
