Advances in the treatment of colon cancer have helped to make this preventable disease a smaller monster to those in Western culture. Prevention has taken a more prominent role in the fight against colon cancer, but conflicting information inhibits the preventive facts from being put to use. Here in this article on the treatment of colon cancer we will see some of the options for treatment and some side effects.
Because cancer involves the mutation of healthy cells through oxygen starvation, many treatments of colon cancer are temporary. Preventive screening for colon cancer ( also called colorectal cancer ) is therefore imperative so that this disease can be caught at its earliest levels. It is hoped that someday the treatment of colon cancer is no longer needed. Nevertheless, colon cancer is preventable and is easily treatable at early stages. The current trend is to study the genetic causes of colon cancer and make treatments based on this information. Since the DNA of healthy cells mutate over to unhealthy cancerous cells, it is easy to see why this would be a focus. Genetic options for the treatment of colon cancer will be limited at best without also studying the biologic side. This very thing was done in the 1930’s by Doctor Otto Warburg. He received the Nobel Prize twice for his work on the primary cause of cancer.
Modern treatment of colon cancer is a matter of removing malignant cells from the colon using drugs, surgery and sometimes radiation therapy. The stage level of the cancer will determine which type of treatment will be used. The stage level called “Stage 0″ can be removed during colonoscopy. A person with a “Stage II” colon cancer may or may not be required to have chemotherapy after surgery removes the cancer. For those who have “Stage III” cancer, chemotherapy is almost always recommended. For those with the highest stage of colon cancer, “Stage IV”, not only is chemotherapy advised, but since the cancer has spread to other organs, such as the liver, more surgery may be required. At this point, treatment surpasses just the colon and is focused on the liver or whatever organ the cancer has spread to.
In addition to the stage level, the overall health of the patient is taken into consideration for treatment of colon cancer. Another factor in the treatment of colon cancer is whether or not the cancer is a recurring cancer or not. A new online tool has been introduced to help predict the risks that a person will have of contracting colon cancer. This tool uses common information available to make a risk assessment for colon cancer. It should be used to help prevent needing the treatment of colon cancer. It is estimated by the National Cancer Institute that 49,960 people died of colorectal ( colon ) cancer during 2008. For a disease that is highly preventable, this fact is highly saddening since they lost their lives mainly through ignorance or apathy. For those who are looking online, they may well be saving their own lives or the life of a friend or loved one and never need to endure the treatment of colon cancer.