Bowel cancer has a number of symptoms to it, but there are four silent symptoms which few may be aware of, and they could point to a number of infections
Four silent symptoms of bowel cancer have been identified and are signs you must seek medical advice.
Bowel cancer affects the large bowel, which is made up of the colon and rectum. Survival rates vary but people are advised to go to a doctor if they have any of these prevailing symptoms, with the silent suddenness of them something everybody needs to be aware of.
A crucial difference between these four local symptoms and the rarer symptoms is that the former usually indicates the early stages of bowel cancer. Those who catch these symptoms early are advised to seek medical help. Paying close attention to your body is crucial to detecting the cancer.
Local symptoms are defined as constipation and/or diarrhoea, rectal bleeding, blood in the stool, abdominal pain, ribbon-shaped stool and feeling of incomplete emptying of your bowel after using the toilet. These are signs that you should seek a doctor’s advice. They could be signs of a non-cancerous condition but to verify this speaking to a medical professional is advised.
Other symptoms, the systemic ones of bowel cancer, are harder to spot but may indicate a much more serious problem than early symptoms would. Systemic symptoms do not just affect the colon but the entire body and while it can be hard to tie them specifically to colon cancer, they are an important warning sign.
They are a loss of appetite without a reason, weight loss for unexplained reasons, nausea and vomiting, anaemia and weakness or fatigue. These are similar to local symptoms in that they can point to other, non-cancerous health conditions and that they should be checked by a doctor.
Rarer symptoms are the four potentially silent ones to look for. These can often mimic gastrointestinal problems more commonly seen as problems which go away on their own. They can, however, be a sign of bowel cancer and that is why they should be treated the same as local or systemic symptoms.
Those with recurring, sharp abdominal pain, continuous fatigue, iron deficiency anaemia or gradual weight loss should seek a doctor’s advice as it could be symptoms of bowel cancer. Doctors can diagnose bowel cancer in a number of ways, usually through a colonoscopy which is the main tool for determining a diagnosis.
But other routes are available including a biopsy where a small piece of tissue is taken from a suspected cancer spot, image testing with a CT scan or gene testing to gather tissue cells which can determine the best course of treatment.
