It’s called the “silent surge” — men in their 30s being diagnosed with colon cancer. 7Investigates why their symptoms are often misdiagnosed. Here’s 7’s Courtney Allen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thirty-four-year-old Rory Kennedy was on top of the world, married with a newborn and living an active life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rory Kennedy: “When you’re in your 30s and you’re living a life where you’re just on the go and you work out all the time, you eat well, I’ve never had any health issues.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He felt great, with perfect blood work and no reason to worry. Until he started experiencing bowel problems and went to see a doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rory Kennedy: “I had black, tarry stools. They just thought I had an ulcer. So we did some testing. They gave me some antibiotics and symptoms went away pretty quickly.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But two years later, his symptoms came back. Doctors performed a colonoscopy and endoscopy. The tests revealed he had colon cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rory Kennedy: “Surgery was scheduled for just two weeks later, then four weeks after that, it’s chemo and chemo is for six months.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani at Mt. Sinai Medical Center is seeing more and more young colon cancer patients like Rory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani, colorectal surgeon: “I’ve seen a significant increase in the numbers. The youngest patient that I’ve diagnosed is as early as 26-years-old.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said diet, environment and genetics can play a role, but the mindset of younger men can be part of the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani: “It’s not something that they want to talk about, especially men. You know, they’re like, “Do I need it? It’s not necessary.’ Or like, they’ll give you 1,000 arguments why they’re fine.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But it is a serious problem. The American Cancer Society recently lowered the age for a first time colonoscopy from 50 to 45, because catching colon cancer early is a key to survival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani: “So let’s say that you find a polyp that was just beginning, like pre-cancerous polyp, and you remove that. And that’s the absolute prevention of a colon cancer.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Muddassani said it’s tough to get younger patients to understand their risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Kiranmayi Muddassani: “Listen to your body. It’s extremely important that you listen to your body. If you feel something is persistent, when I say persistent, it is more than 3 months and it doesn’t go away, ask yourself a question: ‘Are my symptoms getting better, worse or the same?'”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A few months after Roy’s first surgery, doctors found two more tumors on his liver, which put him at stage 4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rory Kennedy: “The percentages aren’t good, but I do know people do beat this. You really don’t have another option, you got to keep going, especially when you’re younger and you have a wife and a kid.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He wants other young men to hear his story so if they are experiencing any symptoms, they seek out an early diagnosis and early life-saving treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Courtney Allen, 7News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:<\/strong>
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"