I know we have discussed briefly about the colon cancer symptoms and warning signs, but I think it is important for you to understand the colon cancer symptoms more thoroughly. Starting from this post, I will reveal more information about a particular colon cancer symptoms. And this time it is the bowel movement changes.

Colon Cancer Symptoms #1 – Bowel Movement Changes

Many people are reluctant to discuss about this because it -understandably- makes them uneasy. However, changes in your bowel movement is an important clues about what’s going on inside your digestive system, and it could be the colon cancer. For those who still haven’t really figure out what bowel movement is, the easiest way to explain it is this: bowel movement is the activity inside your stomach that makes you want to go to the bathroom. In terms of colon cancer and other digestive problems, how often you go to the bathroom and whether you have regular constipation or diarrhea is important.

The “normal rate” for bowel movements is vary. If I normally have one bowel movements every 2 days, and I’m currently have one or two bowel movements every day, it means that there’s a change in the bowel habits. Another example is if there’s a person who usually goes to the bathroom three times a day, and recently he only goes  once a day, it can means constipation.

Therefore, it is wise to understand your normal bowel movement, and track a record of it. If there’s a change in the habit, you should pay attention to it. Normally, if the changes in bowel habit only lasts a short time, then there’s nothing to worry about.

Colon Cancer Symptoms #1 – When to See Your Doctor

On the other hand, if you experience changes in bowel habits that last for more than a few weeks, or if you struggle with chronic constipation, chronic diarrhea, or intermittent constipation or diarrhea, you should make an appointment to see your doctor sooner, rather than later. Since it could be one of the colon cancer symptoms. It’s better to be sure than guessing, right?

Changes in bowel habits can have many causes ranging from the not-so-serious to the very serious. You don’t want to ignore these changes. If they signal something serious, such as colon cancer or inflammatory bowel disease, the sooner you get a diagnosis the better. With colon cancer, for example, if it is diagnosed in the earliest stages, survival rates are well over 90%. If the cancer is more advanced, and has spread beyond the colon, survival rates drop dramatically.

Colon Cancer Symptoms #1 – Other Symptoms

See what other colon cancer symptoms are in the main article: Colon cancer symptoms and warning signs

Waiting to see what happened when you do have changes in bowel habits is not recommended. No matter how hard the reality is (getting a colon cancer, perhaps), it is much better to know it now, so that you can optimally find the medical care for it. Anyway, in most cases, it might be something less serious than colon cancer. In order to really understand the bowel movement changes, your doctor might recommend you to do colonoscopy or flexible sigmoidoscopy. Other types of colon cancer symptoms screening tests might also be recommended.

So from now on, keep a track of your digestive’s bowel movement changes. It might be a colon cancer symptoms, but in most cases it’s not.