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Symptoms
There are a number of symptoms that are suggestive of colorectal cancer. You may have only one or two of these symptoms but to rule out colorectal cancer they will need to be investigated. However having these symptoms does not necessarily mean that you have colorectal cancer as a number of other conditions can present with similar symptoms.
Symptoms of colorectal cancer are:
- Change in bowel habit - this may mean that you are going to the toilet more frequently than usual, or that you have either diarrhoea or are constipated.
- Blood in or around the stool - you may have noticed that there is blood in your stool or that your stool is darker than usual.
- Pain in the abdomen
- Pain on defecating
- A feeling of not having properly emptied the bowel after going to the toilet
- Weight loss for no apparent reason
- Loss of appetite
- An increased feeling of tiredness and lethargy
There are also may indications from tests that your doctor has done such as:
- Anaemia - this is where you have not got enough red blood cells in your blood, these are the cells that carry oxygen arround the body. If you are anaemic it could be that you are bleeding from somewhere that is not noticeable
- Positive Faecal Occult Blood test
Other conditions which can also have these symptoms:
- Ulcerative colitis
- Crohn's disease
- Haemorrhoids (piles)
- Iron deficiency aneamia
For more information on the symptoms of colorectal cancer please look at the following pages
Medline Plus Medical Encyclopedia - A patient information service from the United States National library of medicine
Cancer Backup - Patient information on symptoms of colorectal cancer from a patient information charity.
Best Treatments - A site from the British Medical Journal (BMJ) giving information on the symptoms of colorectal cancer.