How Does Colon Cancer Start Out?

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To clearly understand on how colon cancer starts out, experts have classified the stages of the cancer. And as noted before, the earlier stage of the disease, the easier the disease to treat!

Precancerous growths

Many times, the cancerous growth in the colon starts as clumps of polyps (precancerous cells) on the inside lining of bowel. The shape of these polyps can vary, but mostly they are recessed /flat into the wall of the bowel. In other cases, they may look like mushroom-shaped.

Catching the existence of these polyps are so essential to prevent colon cancer. If these polyps are completely removed, there is greater chance to prevent these precancerous cells from becoming cancerous cells.

*Image credit to Mayo

Stage 0

It is the condition of when the cancerous cells are still completely in the inner lining of the colon. Even they have not grown into the muscles walls. At this stage, the cancer is easiest to treat.

Stage I

The cancer has grown through the colon’s inner lining or even into the wall muscles (but typically not further).

Stage II

The cancerous cells have grown into the outer covering of the colon wall. But there are still no any lymph nodes affected.

Stage III

The cancerous growth has grown bigger in size and some lymph nodes (typically nearby lymph nodes) have been affected.

Stage IV

This is the most advance stage of the disease. In this stage, the disease is most difficult to treat since it has spread to other distinct organs (such as liver or even lungs). Typically, the cancerous cells spread through bloodstream and lymphatic system.