The seven factors that increase your risk of colon cancer if you’re under 50, according to a major study – and THESE are the hot spots for the disease

Scientists have revealed the seven factors that put young men at higher risk of colon cancer – as experts scramble to find what’s driving a rise in the disease.

Once seen as a disease of the elderly, there has been a mysterious doubling in the number of colon cancer cases among young adults in recent years.

Indiana University researchers analyzed the medical records of 3,000 men ages 35 to 49, one-fifth of whom were diagnosed with colon cancer.

The study, recently published in the journal Cancer prevention researchlooked at men’s electronic medical records from medical centers and veteran databases.

To determine who was most at risk for early-stage colon cancer — when the cancer occurs before age 50 — researchers examined medical records for 67 factors — including diet, smoking status and whether the men took over-the-counter medications.

Of all the factors, scientists found seven that significantly increased the risk for men.

They were: being of an older age (35 to 49 years old); alcohol consumption; a high personal contribution; having a first- or second-degree relative, such as a parent, sibling, or aunt, with colon cancer; have a high burden of disease, such as smoking; and not regularly taking statins or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as aspirin or ibuprofen.

Dr. Thomas Imperiale, a gastroenterologist at the university and lead author of the study, said the findings do not suggest that all young men start using NSAIDs or statins on a regular basis because there is a risk of side effects, such as kidney damage.

He told DailyMail.com that most men should instead “look at the other five factors to see which ones might increase their risk.”

Dr Imperiale said: ‘This study is important because it puts on the table whether, and possibly how, people who are under 45 years old – younger than the age for recommended bowel cancer screening – should be on the table to consider screening.

‘We know that colorectal cancer is increasing at a younger age, although the absolute risk is much lower even in the 45 to 54 age group.

“However, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to identify higher-risk younger people and screen them.”

He added: ‘Clinicians might have a conversation with a patient and say that while screening guidelines don’t go into effect until age 45 and you don’t have a family history, you do have some risk factors. Could you consider a non-invasive screening test?’

The above map, published in 2020 in the American Journal of Cancer Research, shows counties with the highest rates of early stage colon cancer in the U.S. between 1999 and 2017 — and they’re mostly concentrated on the East Coast and Southeast

Data from JAMA Surgery showed that colon cancer is expected to increase by 90 percent in people ages 20 to 34 by 2030. Doctors aren’t sure what caused the mysterious rise

Researchers found that men who had a family member with colon cancer were more than twice as likely as their peers to develop the disease.

Current alcohol consumption increased the risk by 75 percent, and having high copay insurance increased the risk by 61 percent.

A high burden of disease increased the risk by 15 percent, being slightly older increased the risk by nine percent.

The researchers suggested that taking NSAIDs and statins regularly may lower cancer risk because they affect the production of prostaglandins — a hormone involved in inflammation — in cells lining the colon.

Drinking alcohol can increase risk by causing damage to cells in the colon and changes in the gut microbiome.

High copay insurance is a risk factor because it makes people less likely to seek medical help, they said.

Colon cancer usually starts as a small growth called a polyp on the inner lining of the colon.

Over time, cells in these polyps begin to grow out of control, leading to the development of colon cancer.

People with colon cancer often don’t show symptoms until later stages, when the disease is more difficult to treat.

Symptoms of this cancer include rectal bleeding or blood in the stool, losing weight without trying, persistent abdominal pain, and a change in bowel habits.

In the 1990s, only 11 percent of colon cancer cases were among people younger than 55 years old.

But cases have more than doubled, with people in that age group now accounting for a fifth of all new diagnoses, according to the latest 2021 data.

Amid the spike in early-onset colon cancer, researchers in a separate study from 2020 found that 232 counties in the US were considered cancer hot spots. Ninety-two percent of the hotspots were in the South and eight percent in the Midwest.

It wasn’t clear why most of the hotspots were in the South, but scientists said it could be because of a larger African-American population – with the disease disproportionately affecting this group – and higher poverty rates leading to less access to health care.

If caught in the early stages, before spreading to other parts of the body, the Fight Colorectal Cancer charity says nine in 10 colorectal cancer patients will live longer than five years after their diagnosis.

But if the cancer is not discovered until stage three — when it has spread to other parts of the body — this drops to 71 percent. At stage four, only 14 percent of patients live another five years.