What Are The Stages Of Colon Cancer?

olorectal cancer is the abnormal growth of colon cells; it usually starts in the colon or rectum and can spread to other parts of your body. There are five stages. 0,  I,  II,  III, and IV (also known as metastasis)

What Are The Symptoms Of Colorectal Cancer?

General warning signs include stomach pain that does not go away, frequent diarrhea with blood in it, unintentional weight loss, cramps or bloating black or tarry stools, and a feeling of not being able to empty your colon (this is called fecal impaction).

What Are The Stages Of Colon Cancer?

Treatment during the stages of cancer depends on how giant the tumor is and if it has spread outside the colon. During stage 0, there are no visible tumors or precancerous polyps; this is curable. If it has spread to nearby lymph nodes or tissues in early-stage but hasn’t reached more distant parts of the body yet, that would be considered stage I.

Stage II means the cancer has reached nearby lymph nodes or tissues, and early-stage has spread to the liver, lungs, or other parts of the colon.

Stage III means cancer cells have grown through the colon wall into other areas in the body such as fatty tissue, muscle planes, mesentery (the fold of tissue that attaches colon to organs), blood vessels, and lymphatic channels; it can also be metastatic colon cancer. Some  treatment options include colon resection surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy.

Stage IV  only occurs when the cancer spreads to other parts of your body: typically bone marrow, lung, liver, and brain; this is also called metastatic colon cancer. Treatment for all stages depends on various factors, such as what stage it is at and where it has spread. Some colon cancer help includes: looking at colon cancer with colonoscopy, colon resection surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy.

When Should I See A Doctor About Colon Cancer?

If you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, see your doctor immediately. If your cancer has spread or metastasized, this can be too late for some treatments; however, there are still treatments that could work. If it has reached stage IV, it means it has spread too far away from the colon to do colon resection surgery or other  treatments that need to be done within the body.

Treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy might work better in this case; however, these will only be colon cancer treatments to help slow colon cancer down so you can live longer while colon cancer is becoming more resistant to treatment.

When Is It Too Late For Treatment Of Colon Cancer?

If it cannot be treated, this is called end-stage colon cancer; meaning that treatment has failed and nothing left can be done about it. Suppose colon cancer has metastasized to other parts of your body, including the brain, liver, bones, lungs, or lymph nodes. This means colon cancer has reached  IV, which is too late for many  treatments. In that case, however, treatment options may vary depending on what stage it is at (I through IV).

Chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy are colon cancer treatments that could help if the cancer has reached stage IV; however, none of these treatments will completely cure colon cancer.

If colon cancer is at the end-stage  (meaning treatment failed), then this means it has spread too far away from the colon to do colon resection surgery or other colon cancer treatments that need to be done within the body. Treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy might work better in this case; however, these will only be colon cancer treatments to help slow colon cancer down so you can live longer while it is becoming more resistant to treatment.