– Chase Bunker, News 104.5 WOKV and Kristine Bellino

As we get older, medical professionals encourage us to get screened for colon cancer. Dr. Ishaan Madhok, a gastroenterologist at Borland Groover, stopped by Jacksonville’s Morning News In-Depth to discuss when you should have one, what the process entails, possible outcomes, and how patients proceed with treatment in the event of a cancer diagnosis.

“Colon cancer is increasing, as well as other cancers are, but increasing in number in terms of how early people are getting them,” said Dr. Madhok. However, colon cancer has now become the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in patients under the age of 50. About 20 years ago, it was about number five. It’s certainly increasing in terms of the prevalence, but also, younger people are just getting colon cancer.” Dr. Madhok later adds, “When colon cancer is detected at an early stage, it has a good prognosis. Over 90% of people end up living. So, there are a fair amount of colon cancers that are preventable.”

Dr. Madhok recommends getting tested around the age of 45. “In general, over half of colon cancers that are diagnosed under the age of 50 are between the ages of 45 and 50. […] I suspect if you’re not able to identify why people are getting colon cancer younger, and we’re seeing this continued increase, I think the age will continue to drop, and that’s just for average risk people.”