Colon Cancer Warning Signs

The top colon cancer warning signs need to be realized by you fairly quickly if you want to have even a fighting chance at being able to come back after developing colon cancer. As with any form of cancer, colon cancer is best handled effectively when you know what the warning signs are beforehand. Then, should you ever be unlucky enough to get it, you at least can a head start on those poor, unfortunate souls who are blind-sided by the disease.

1. Blood in the Stool. Without a doubt, blood in the stool is the top colon cancer warning sign because the presence of blood someplace that it shouldn't be is quite alarming in and of itself. This warning sign will definitely draw your attention, and you ought to look for blood that is bright red and very visible after you defecate. In some cases, the blood may be so dark that it actually is black in color. To be on the safe side, treat yourself to a fecal occult test if you suspect you may have blood in your stool because at times, the blood may well be present, but it just is hidden.
2. Smaller Stool Size. When your stool starts to become noticeably smaller in size versus its regular size, it should be taken as a warning sign of colon cancer. The kind of size that you should look for in your stool to really alert you is a pencil-thin one. Pencil-thin stools occur because of the growth of the actual cancer in your colon; in turn, this leads to a more restrictive passageway for your defecation to move through when you try to have a bowel movement.
3. Weight Loss. Weight loss can be yet another warning sign of colon cancer, and it is not surprising as to why. The concept behind this warning sign is ultra-simple yet very urgent: As you are suffering the effects of the colon cancer ravaging your body, you will gradually begin to lose your appetite, just as you would be less likely to feel well enough to eat regularly if you had any other kind of disease. So with less food intake, you begin to endure something known as a calorie deficit, meaning you actually burn more calories than you take in through food, so that you end up losing weight.