At What Stage of Colon Cancer Do Symptoms Typically Appear?

[j.man]

I understand that every person is different and I know that someone can be diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer without any symptoms. But at what Stage (I, II, III, IV) do people typically start to have symptoms of colon cancer?

[canadiandaughter]

For my father, he had diarrhea for about a month before he went to the doctor to start with all the tests. First they thought maybe a bacteria in his colon, so a laxative was used while he waited to get in for his ultrasound. After the ultra sound they saw a shadow in his colon so a colonoscopy was ordered. He felt 100% fine otherwise, which he has struggled with mentally. He can't believe that he has stage iv colon cancer and has no pain. We keep trying to tell him that it is a good sign, it means the spreading hasn't effected any of his other organs yet. Another glitch in his treatment was that the surgeon told him it looked well contained and didnt think there was any spreading and he would get surgery and all would be well. The catscan was just to be safe. So it was quite the shock to all of us when we got the results of the scan and found out it had indeed spread.

[NWgirl]

There was an article in our local paper not too long ago talking about how most colorectal cancer was being diagnosed through the ER room at late stages 3 & 4; because people weren't getting scopes and they would show up in the ER with painful symptoms.

You're right though, everyone is different. Some can have pain from a large tumor yet still be stage 1. I had no pain, a large tumor and was stage 3. A lot depends on where the tumor is and how big it gets before it starts pushing on things and causing pain. It can depend on how much rectal bleeding there is before you notice it and see a doctor. For some people they experience fatigue from anemia that prompts them to see a doctor.

One of the challenges of CRC is the most common symptom is no symptom of all, which is why screening is SO important.

[Bev G]

My diarrhea started EIGHT YEARS before I was diagnosed. I had vague, but not bad, diffuse abdominal pain, and a lot of bloating. I was told repeatedly I had IBS. A couple of times I had some blood in my stool, but my husband (physician) told me it was "normal" to have that occasionally (NOT!)--told me the same thing about the mucous (NOT!). Really it was just the constant (many, many times a day) diarrhea that finally got me to colonoscopy. I was stage IV.

[JAZZToo]

I had no symptoms prior to my belated first colonoscopy at age 57. When I awoke and the gastro doc came in, I asked how did i do. I was shocked when he said you're going to need an operation, there is a golf ball size mass in your cecum. I never had any rectal bleeding or change in bowel habits. My husband, son and daughter have all had occasional rectal bleeding and their colonoscopies were negative for growths or polyps. Go figure?! Since the cecum is the widest part of the large intestine and it's contents are still liquid, there is plenty of room for a mass to grow before causing symptoms. However, the closer the tumor is to the rectum, the more solidified and/or solid the contents and the narrower the colon,thus, symptoms will appear at an earlier stage.
Leslie

2014 Pancreatic Cancer Stage IV
2003 Colon Cancer Stage III
1995 Endometrial Cancer Stage I
Lynch Syndrome

[janklo]

Jman, if you go to the main webpage, you can read the 'Colonder' stories. A lot of them describe symptoms and a lot describe people who felt no symptoms until they had a big one and went to the ER. My daughter went to the ER several times before finally being diagnosed. Her main symptoms were pain, nausea and vomiting.

[pukalania]

also..early symptoms sometimes get dismissed...my hubby went to see his doc few times during a 2 year period..and kept getting dismissed with acid reflux meds...doc was not concerned with blood in stool since he was only 30..so prescribed meds for hemorrhoids...then one day we ended up in ER with full blockage...tumor has grown to full obstruction and nothing could pass through...stage 3 discovery at ER visit...

[mstults]

I had bleeding that was not a particularly large amount in my estimation for 3 years or so. I stupidly diagnosed it as hemorrhoids. I started to have a small amount of pain and quite a bit of gas. I told my gp about the pain and gas but not the bleeding cause it wasn't happening all the time. The gp told me to take simethicone. I got extremely tired. I don't think it was anemia cause they didn't give me blood. I think it was just the tumor activity. The last 2-3 weeks before the cancer was found I would work and by the end of the day I could barely drive home. I actually felt better after surgery and beginning chemo. Everyone is different.

[nkoske]

I think in general distal (Rectal, sigmoid) cancer present themselves earlier than more proximal tumors (acceding, transverse,descending). I believe that's the case because there's less space in the pelvis so stuff that doesn't like to get pushed on get pushed on sooner.

A couple notes from http://www.uptodate.com "Clinical presentation, diagnosis, and staging of CRC":
One study of 1071 patients newly diagnosed with CRC, 217 were Dx'd through screening, patients not diagnosed through screening (symptomatic) were at higher risk for more invasive tumor (2 times more likely to have a tumor greater than or equal to T3), two time more likely to have nodal involvment, 3.4 times more likely to the metastic disease, 3 times higher death rate, 2 times higher recurrence rate and shorter survival and disease free intervals.
Rectal bleeding is more common with distal cancers and a larger percentage of distal cancers present as early stage tumors when compared with proximal cancers.

[Carolinabluetec]

Stage II, no symptoms at all. My first colon cancer symptoms were when I woke up from surgery and had a IV in each arm and a Foley catheter (you know where).

[shade]

Mine was discovered during my age 50 colonoscopy. I had blood in my stool for 5 years prior, but my primary docs said not to worry, it was probably a fissure ("they take forever to go away"). Obviously I should have worried. But I never had any other symptoms. As I tell people, the only pain or problems I've had are due to the treatment. Hope it stays that way.

[Val*pal]

My husband was Stage IV when diagnosed. He really had no symptoms. However, after reading a lot more about colon cancer and thinking back, starting about 18 months before the diagnosis, he did complain about feeling extremely full and bloated after a regular sized meal. I remember after one dinner at a restaurant his brother teased him for having a sudden potbelly. We thought nothing of it. Also, about 6 months before he was diagnosed, I was surprised one day at how tired he seemed. He always liked to nap, but that particular day his regular nap didn't appear to refresh him.

[CrystalSue]

DH had blood on toilet paper following BM 2-3 months before "blow out" (Bob the tumor ulcerated), trip to the ER and colonoscopy one week later. The doctor said he had the mass for less than a year. After CT and PET scans and EUS, he was staged at IIa (T3N0M0).

[orcasres]

I am 2a. I did have my screening colonoscopy at 50, but I had a hard time cleaning out and the GI considered the prep fair, but still passed me for 10 years with one benign polyp. At 57 I suddenly started having pains in the abdomen and low grade fevers at night. They went away for a month and started up again so I went to my GP. CBC numbers and liver enzymes were bad so I was shipped off to the mainland (we live on an island) for a CT scan and I had a large tumor in my colon which was very close to being blocked. I had surgery a couple of days later.

Lois

[elise]

Colon (stage 2): I had a fussy colon (diarrhea or constipation if I didn't eat a great diet) the whole 10 years my colon tumour was growing but no real side effects except anemia when the tumour was bleeding lots. That's how they knew to go looking for something.

Liver (stage 4): none. I was a little tired but I was always tired since I finished chemo in 2012. So maybe a tiny bit more tired than normal

Elise