Young people are being diagnosed with colon cancer in record numbers – and now, researchers are warning they are also more likely to be diagnosed at later stages, as well as have the cancer come back.
Colon cancer diagnoses have surged in the US over the past two decades, with healthy people in their 20s and 30s increasingly getting the disease.
And experts are racing to find the cause, pointing the blame at obesity, processed foods, and sedentary lifestyles.
But amid a flurry of theories, researchers in Denmark have revealed the tragic common themes seen in young patients.
In a study of 25,000 adults with colorectal cancer (CRC), researchers found early-onset disease was associated with a later-stage diagnosis and people under 50 were nearly 30 percent more likely to have their cancer return than older patients.
It also took less time for their cancer to recur, suggesting younger patients have more aggressive forms of the disease.
However, the team said more research is needed to determine if younger patients should be screened more intensely for relapses.
The above graph shows the increase in US colorectal cancers in men and women from 2000 through 2021
The above graphs show the faster rate at which younger people with colon cancer (left graph) suffer recurrences and other tumors than people with later-onset colon cancer (right graph)
The study, published in December in the journal The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, looked at 25,729 colorectal cancer patients, five percent of whom were under 50 years old.
Participants were 31 to 80 years old and had been diagnosed at stages one, two, or three.
The average participant age was 68, and 56 percent of patients were men.
Most of the patients (40 percent) had stage two cancer, while 36 percent were stage three and 23 percent were stage one.
The participants were divided into three groups based on when they had surgery to remove their tumors: 2004-2008, 2009-2013, and 2014-2019.
The researchers followed them for six months after surgery until they either had a relapse, died from the disease, were diagnosed with another form of cancer, moved to another country, or went five years without a recurrence.
Patients under 50 had a 29 percent recurrence rate over five years compared to 21 percent for the older group – a 28 percent heightened risk their disease would come back.
Additionally, younger participants had a recurrence after an average of 14.5 months compared to 17.5 months for older patients.
The above graph shows the rate at which younger people with colon cancer suffer recurrences (blue), other types of cancer (red) and death (green)
The above graph shows the rate at which older people with colon cancer suffer recurrences (blue), other types of cancer (red) and deaths (green)
The above graphs show the increased risk of recurrence in younger patients six (left) and 12 months (right) after surgery
Patients under 40 had the highest relapse rate, at 31 percent over five years. The relapse rate for people 40 to 49 years old was 28 percent, and patients ages 50 to 59 had a 23 percent recurrence rate.
The experts suggested this could be because patients under 40 are considered too young to qualify for regular colon cancer screening – such as a colonoscopy – leading them to not receive a diagnosis until their cancer becomes severe enough to cause symptoms and spread throughout their body.
However, other recent research suggests diets high in ultra-processed foods, which have become more prevalent over recent decades, could be to blame.
Studies estimate 70 percent of Americans’ diets are now made up of processed foods and ingredients.
Researchers of the 2024 study also found younger patients with cancer tended to have more frequent follow-up scans following their diagnosis, which could have led to tumors being spotted earlier.
Younger patients were, however, more likely to survive their diagnosis than older patients.
Of those in the early-onset relapse group, 39 percent died within five years compared to 55 percent of relapse patients over 50.
This could be due to younger patients being less likely to have other pre-existing conditions like obesity and high blood pressure.
Raquel (left) was 28 when doctors diagnosed her with stage four colon cancer. Evan White (right) was diagnosed with colon cancer at 24. He died four years later, just weeks before his wedding
Authors acknowledged several limitations to the research, such as excluding patients over 80 and those with previous cancers.
Patients who relapsed within six months of surgery were also not included, as the researchers wanted to wait for patients to stop their primary treatments.
The researchers said: ‘Our study suggests that early-onset CRC patients had a higher risk of recurrence compared to late-onset CRC from 2004 to 2019 for all disease stages indicating that delayed diagnosis is not the sole explanation for the higher risk.
‘Nevertheless, an increased awareness towards early-onset CRC in general practice and by gastroenterologists may still promote earlier diagnosis and prognosis in these patients.’
The US has the sixth highest rate of early-onset cancers, with 87 cases per 100,000 people under 50, and colon cancer is among the fastest rising.
Researchers from the University of Missouri-Kansas City recently looked at rates of colorectal cancer in people 10 to 44 years old over the last two decades and found cases had risen in all age groups.
Carly Barrett, from Kentucky, was diagnosed with colon cancer at age 24 after detecting blood in her stool and suffering from abdominal pain
The rate of colorectal cancers grew 500 percent among children ages 10 to 14 and 333 percent among teenagers aged 15 to 19 years.
Rates rose by 71 percent among people 30 to 34 to seven cases per 100,000 people. Among people 35 to 39, rates rose by 58 percent to 12 cases per 100,000 people.
Many young patients have their symptoms dismissed for more benign gastrointestinal conditions, leading to a more aggressive disease.
DailyMail.com has repeatedly documented the global rise of colon cancer among young people.
For example, Raquel, from California, was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer at just 28 years old.
She had suffered severe diarrhea off and on for three years that included blood in her stool. Yet doctors referred her to a psychologist instead of ordering additional tests.
And Evan White, 24, from Dallas, had just graduated from the University of Arkansas with a degree in finance when he was diagnosed with colon cancer after dismissing his main symptom – tiredness – for months.
The tumor was not spotted until it had progressed to stage three, meaning it had spread outside the colon, making it much harder to treat.
He died at age 29, just before his wedding.
