Early Detection Of Colon Cancer Is The Key To Surviving The Cancer
Colon cancer is the second major reason for deaths resulting from cancer
. Every year, roughly forty eight thousand individuals will die due to colon cancer. Many of these fatalities would be prevented with early diagnosis and treatment by routine colon cancer screening of asymptomatic people.
When the cancer is detected while it is still a small polyp in the course of a regularly scheduled screening test, such as a colonoscopy, the polyp may be able to be taken out during the colonoscopy. At this point, there is no requirement for the surgical removal of any portion of the colon. If,however, the polyp becomes a tumor and reaches Stage 1 or Stage 2, the tumor and a part of the colon on each side is surgical removed. The chances that the individual will survive the cancer is over ninety percent for Stage I and seventy three percent for Stage 2.
If the disease advancesto a Stage III, surgery is no longer sufficient. The patient will, in addition, need to have chemotherapy. At this stage the chances that the person will continue to be alive over five years after the diagnosis is reduced to 53%, depending on such factors as the quantity of lymph nodes that have cancer.
By the time the colon cancer gets to the fourth Stage, treatment might necessitate chemotherapy and perhaps other drugs along with surgery on multiple organs. In case the dimensions and number of tumors in different organs (such as the liver and lungs) are small enough, surgery to eliminate the cancer from those other organs might be the initial treatment, then chemotherapy. In some cases the size or quantity of tumors in the other organs removes the choice of surgery as part of the treatment.
If chemotherapy and different drugs are able to reduce the number and size of these tumors, surgery might at that point become an option as the second form of treatment. Otherwise, chemotherapy and various drugs (perhaps through clinical trials) may for a time halt or cut down the ongoing progression of the cancer. The relative 5-year survival rate drops to around eight percent.
As the relative 5-year survival rates suggest, the time frame when the colon cancer is detected and treated makes a dramatic difference. If discovered and treated early, the patient has an excellent chance of outliving the disease. When diagnosis and treatment is delayed, the chances start shifting from the individual so that once the cancer reaches Stage 3, the probability is nearly 50/50. Further the chances decrease precipitously when the cancer metastasizes.
But, all too often doctors do not recommend standard cancer testing to men and women who do not have symptoms. When the cancer is finally diagnosed - sometimes because the tumor has become so large that it is leading to blockage, since the patient is anemic and it is worsening, or because the person begins to notice other indications - the colon cancer has already advanced to a Stage 3 or even a Stage 4. The person now confronts a much different prognosis than he or she would have if the cancer had been discovered early through standard screening tests.
In medical malpractice terms, the person has sustained a loss of chance of a better recovery. In other words, since the doctor did not recommend that the individual have a routine screening test, the cancer is now much more advanced and the person has a much lower likelihood of outliving the cancer. The failure of a doctor to advise the patient undergo screening options for colon cancer might constitute medical malpractice.
You should consult with an attorney at once if you feel there was a delayed diagnosis of colon cancer because of a physician's not suggesting routine colon cancer screening. This article is for general educational uses only and is not intended to be legal (or medical) advice. For any health issues your should contact a physician. If you think you may have a medical malpractice claim contact a lawyer immediately. A competent lawyer experienced in handling cancer cases can assist determine if you have a claim for a delayed diagnosis colon cancer from a failure on the part of a doctor to recommend colon cancer screening. The law limits the amount of time you have to pursue a case so do not wait to call an attorney.
by: Joseph Hernandez
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