Are Young People Getting More Colon Cancer?

Colorectal cancer in younger folks (under 50 years old) is unfortunately on the rise. According to the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, in the US, about 10% of colorectal cancer cases are diagnosed in people under 50. 

• Those numbers are rising about 1-2% percent each year, and researchers are still finding out why. 
• Young adults are the only population group experiencing an increase in colorectal cancer
• Colorectal cancer is currently the deadliest cancer among young men and the second deadliest among young women.

In August 2020, the world lost amazing actor, Black Panther himself, Chadwick Boseman, to colorectal cancer at the age of 43.

Did you know that in 2021, the USPSTF (the federal task force that creates and implements screening guidelines in the US) changed their colorectal cancer screening guidelines? Instead of average-risk folks getting their first screening colonoscopy at 50 (the previous standard), the recommendation is now to start at 45!

Sharing personal experiences, and highlighting the stories of people touched by colorectal cancer is POWERFUL, and the ripple effects flow far.

Your Doctor Friends are SO HONORED to highlight two wonderful individuals on this episode- Ashley Bowman, MHA and Dawn Schneider, PhD, MBA. Ashley and Dawn have quite a bit in common- they are both advocate volunteers at the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, members of the Never Too Young Taskforce Advisory Board, and unfortunately both lost sisters to young-onset colorectal cancer.

Ashley and Dawn share their amazing, heartbreaking, and inspiring personal stories in this episode. We are so grateful!

We will follow up next week with a physician expert in colorectal cancer to provide even more helpful information about why this disease may be targeting younger people, and what we can do as individuals to protect ourselves and those we care about :)

HEADS UP! The Blue Hope Bash annual fundraising event in Chicago is Friday, May 3rd, 2024, at Galleria Marchetti (where Jeremy got married!) and Your Doctor Friends plan to attend! (Julie is already shopping for a fancy blue outfit :)

COME JOIN US! Opportunities to register for the event CLOSE ON TUESDAY 4/23/24 (the day THIS EPISODE DROPS)!

If you can't attend the Blue Hope Bash, PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING to the Colorectal Cancer Alliance!

Resources for this episode include:

A 2021 review article from the World Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology regarding young-onset colorectal cancer.

The National Cancer Institute's website re: warning signs of young-onset colorectal cancer.

A CNN article about the rise of young-onset colorectal cancer.

A CC Alliance article highlighting our guest, Ashley Bowman!

A CC Alliance article highlighting our guest, Dawn Schneider!

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