The main methods for diagnosing colon cancer

Once the early symptoms of the disease appear, you should go to the hospital for professional diagnosis and examination. Early diagnosis is very helpful for the treatment of the disease. This is what people usually call early detection and early treatment. The early symptoms of colon cancer are mostly mild or not obvious, often ignored by patients, and easily missed. Therefore, middle-aged and older patients should be vigilant when they have the following symptoms and consider the possibility of colon cancer.

Colon cancer is diagnosed by:

① Changes in bowel habits (such as constipation, diarrhea or difficulty in defecation), persistent abdominal discomfort, dull pain or bloating in the recent period;

②The fecal occult blood test is continuously positive;

③The stool becomes thinner or contains blood and mucus;

④ A mass can be felt in the abdomen;

⑤ Unexplained anemia, fatigue, or weight loss, etc.

When the above suspicious phenomena occur, in addition to further medical history inquiry and physical examination, the following systematic examinations should be performed immediately to confirm the diagnosis.

1. Anal digital examination and rectal endoscopy

Check for rectal polyps, rectal cancer, internal hemorrhoids or other lesions for identification.

2. Sigmoidoscopy and fiber colonoscopy

Although the sigmoidoscope is 25 cm long, 75% of colorectal cancers are within the scope of the sigmoidoscope. Microscopic examination can not only detect cancer, but also observe its size, location and local infiltration range. Through the sigmoidoscope, tissue can be taken for pathological examination. Fiber colonoscopy can provide a higher diagnosis rate and has been widely used in China. Skilled operators can insert the fiber colonoscope into the cecum and terminal ileum, and can also take pictures. It is indeed an ideal examination method.

3. X-ray examination

1) Abdominal X-ray examination

It is suitable for cases with acute intestinal obstruction, in which the colon above the obstruction site can be seen to be inflated and swollen.

2) Barium enema examination

The intestinal wall at the cancer site is rigid and poorly distensible, peristalsis weakens or disappears at the lesion, the colon bag is irregular or disappears, the intestinal cavity is narrow, the mucosal folds are disordered, destroyed or disappear, and there is a filling defect. Barium-air double contrast radiography is more helpful in diagnosing pedunculated tumors in the colon.

4. Carcinoembryonic antigen test

It has little diagnostic value for early cases, but it is helpful in predicting prognosis and judging recurrence.

Warm reminder: There is still a lack of practical plans for large-scale population prevention and control surveys of colon cancer. When you encounter the above-mentioned suspicious signs of colon cancer, you can only use appropriate examination methods in time to make an early diagnosis, especially when you encounter a positive fecal occult blood test, you must further investigate the cause.