Canada and the United States – even though overall cases and deaths have fallen in recent years.New statistics from the American Cancer Society (ACS) released this week showed that one in five cases, or 20 per cent, were among Americans aged under 55 years in 2019.
That’s almost double the rate of 11 per cent in 1995. Read more: 1 in 5 patients with colon cancer now between 20 and 50 years old, doctors say It’s a similar situation in Canada, where colorectal cancer is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer, according to the Canadian Cancer Society.“The rates are reportedly increasing among adults younger than 50 in Canada and the U.S.,” Elizabeth Holmes, senior manager of health policy at the Canadian Cancer Society, told Global News Friday.“This is certainly something that the cancer surveillance community is monitoring.”Unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, smoking and alcohol consumption increase the risks for this type of cancer, but family history is also a contributing factor, said Holmes.Colorectal cancer starts in the colon or rectum – which are part of the large intestine – and can also spread to other parts of the body.U.S.
data also showed a rise in later-stage diagnosis, with 60 per cent of all new cases at the advanced stage in 2019 compared with 52 per cent in the mid-2000s.