What effect does colon cancer have on pregnancy?

Colon cancer is a common malignant tumor of the digestive tract that occurs in the colon. Most patients are middle-aged or older, but young people can also develop the disease. The male-to-female ratio is about 2:1. Its early symptoms are mainly changes in bowel habits, such as constipation, diarrhea, or alternating diarrhea. There is often a small amount of blood and mucus attached to the surface of the stool. As the disease progresses, the amount of blood in the stool gradually increases, and there is a feeling of tenesmus. Symptoms such as weight loss and anemia are progressively aggravated. So, what effect does colon cancer have on pregnancy?

If a colon cancer patient is currently undergoing treatment, it is best not to get pregnant. The medication and chemotherapy during treatment will affect the health of the fetus. Pregnancy can only be considered under the guidance of a doctor if there is no recurrence at least one year after the treatment is stopped.

In the late stage of colon cancer, symptoms such as jaundice, ascites, hepatomegaly, abdominal mass, intestinal obstruction, cachexia, persistent pain in the sacrococcygeal region, and fecal incontinence may occur. Colon cancer generally grows slowly and metastasizes late. In addition to the above symptoms, the clinical manifestations vary depending on the location of the cancer. Colon cancer most often occurs in the rectum and sigmoid colon, followed by the cecum and ascending colon, transverse colon, splenic flexure, and hepatic flexure.

According to a world epidemiological survey, the incidence of colon cancer is highest in North America, Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other places, ranking first among visceral tumors, but the incidence is very low in Asia, Africa, Latin America and other places.