Junk food lover diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at age 29 fears his ‘*** diet’ of Subway sandwiches and steaks is causing a disease on the rise among young people
A 29-year-old man diagnosed with bowel cancer fears he has caused his own disease by eating too much fast food and red meat for years.
Joe Faratzis, now 34 and from Los Angeles, was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer in 2019 after years of experiencing symptoms including a dull ache in his stomach and detecting blood stains on his toilet paper.
He is one of the victims of a mysterious rise in colon cancer rates among adults under 50, which many doctors blame on poor diet and processed foods.
Faratzis told DailyMail.com: ‘I really think I caused my own colon cancer, you know, that’s my personal opinion.
‘My diet consisted of a lot of processed foods and red meat, there was a lot of similarly processed things – like Subway sandwiches – and late night snacks – it really wasn’t the best. I have also done genetic testing and I am not prone to colon cancer.”
Joe Faratzis, now 34 and from Los Angeles, is pictured above in his 20s before the cancer was discovered (left) and during treatment that began in 2020 (right)
The graph above shows the cases of colon cancer among those under 50 per year. There has been a decline in 2020 as the Covid pandemic led to fewer people registering for screenings
He added online: ‘It’s a very difficult pill to swallow when you think your problems are caused by things you’ve done directly.
‘But when I think back to when I found the tumor, the doctor said it had probably been there for about three years. When I think back, I was 25 at the time and wasn’t taking care of myself.
“I liked the damn diet. I was eating Subway – like Italian Subway sandwiches – non-stop, like any other day I feel like eating because I was too lazy to cook.
‘And I ate red meat like no other. Every time I had the chance to eat a steak, I mean, who doesn’t love a damn steak.
‘But unfortunately I think my diet ultimately caused my colon cancer.’
Numerous studies have linked a diet high in ultra-processed foods – such as mass-produced bread and convenience foods – to a higher risk of cancer, including colon cancer. Research shows that this increases the risk by 29 percent in men who eat. the most processed foods compared to those who eat the least.
Experts believe that chemicals, dyes, sweeteners and preservatives added to products to extend shelf life can increase the risk by causing mutations in DNA.
California this year became the first U.S. state to begin banning food additives that have been legal in America for decades, even after they were banned in Europe.
Yesterday, the state also began considering a further ban on additives for schools.
Mr Faratzis said: ‘I’ve never been told that specifically, it’s kind of alluded to… I don’t have anything genetically that could cause colorectal cancer.
‘So I guess unfortunately I have to blame it on my own fault. I hope I’m wrong, but that’s kind of the conclusion I’ve unfortunately come to.”
Nutritionists divide foods into three groups based on the amount of processing they have undergone. Minimally processed foods, such as apples, are usually exactly as they occur in nature. Processed foods, such as applesauce, have undergone at least one processing process that has changed their original form. In contrast, ultra-processed foods, such as baby jelly babies, have undergone multiple levels of processing and are usually packed with extra fats, dyes and preservatives.
Until 2014, Subway sandwiches contained the preservative azodicarbonamide, which can be broken down in the body into a carcinogen. The European Union banned the substance in 2005.
Much of their meat currently contains the additive sodium nitrite, as previously shown linked to a higher risk of colon cancer.
Several studies have also linked the consumption of large amounts of red meat to colon cancer, warning that the nitrates and nitrites in the meat can be broken down into a substance that can damage the cells in the intestines.
Mr Faratzis first started experiencing symptoms of the cancer in his late 20s, when he started experiencing a dull and mild pain in his chest whenever he bent over.
He went to doctors who ordered a CT scan, but the young professional – who works in the entertainment industry – never followed through, saying he felt it was unnecessary and far too expensive.
About six months later, he noticed that his toilet paper had blood stains on it once or twice a week, which he believed was due to a benign problem.
He said: ‘As a 28-year-old man I thought I was invincible so I didn’t do anything about it.
‘Besides, I didn’t want to just run to the doctor for a rectal exam. The whole situation…seemed awkward and embarrassing.”
However, a few months later he was sitting on the couch when he suddenly saw blood on the couch. He rushed to the toilet, where about half a cup of blood came out of his body.
He then rushed to doctors who ordered a CT scan and a colonoscopy, which revealed he was suffering from what doctors at the time thought was stage two cancer – or cancer that had not spread from his colon.
He received chemotherapy to shrink the tumor and then had surgery in early 2020 to remove the part of the colon that contained cancer.
Mr Faratzis pictured in hospital during treatment for stage four bowel cancer
Mr Faratzis underwent more than 11 operations on his lungs after doctors discovered the cancer had spread there. He is pictured above with his girlfriend Madison and their dog
Faratzis has not had any cancer cells detected in his body for a year and he has good hope for the future
At the time, he also had a colostomy bag fitted – where the small intestine is diverted to empty into a bag instead of the colon, to give the colon time to heal.
Mr Faratzis then had further imaging tests carried out which showed that the cancer had spread to his lungs and liver.
This led to another three months of chemotherapy and 11 lung surgeries in recent years to remove cancerous spots that kept appearing.
Mr Faratzis says he has now gone a year without any new cancer cases, but still has to go to doctors every three months for scans.
He told DailyMail.com: ‘Nothing has emerged in the last year, no evidence of any kind of tumor growing.
‘But the cancer spread through the blood or lymphatic system, so there may still be tumor cells circulating.’
It comes after a bill was unveiled in California yesterday that aimed to ban even more popular food additives from public schools linked to cancer and behavioral health problems.
Democrats introduced the bill to ban red dye No. 40, yellow dye No. 5, yellow dye No. 6, blue dye No. 1, blue dye No. 2, green dye No. 3 and titanium dioxide from schools.
If the legislation passes, brands will have to change their recipes by 2025 or face ban from the state.
The state has also banned potassium bromate, propyl paraben, brominated vegetable oil and red dye No. 3 – and it will take effect in 2027.
Other states, including New York and Pennsylvania, are also considering following suit.