Janet Ogundepo A rise in colorectal cancer, which mostly affects people, aged 50 and above, now occurs among children and young adults between the ages of 10 to 19, a recent research has revealed. The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, also found that colorectal cancer increased to about 500 per cent and 333 per cent among children and teens, respectively. According to the World Health Organisation, colorectal cancer that affects the large intestine (colon) or rectum, is the third most common cancer worldwide and is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide.
The WHO noted that older persons, mostly those above the age of 59 are affected by colorectal cancer. High intake of processed meats, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, smoking and excessive alcohol intake are lifestyle factors the WHO noted, contribute to the development of cancer. PUNCH Healthwise, in several earlier interviews with researchers on paediatric cancer, reported that consumption of processed foods, environmental pollution, and tobacco and alcohol consumption were factors that increased cancer trends globally.
A researcher in Congenital Paediatric Oncology and Infections, Aminu Mohammed, who is also a Professor of Paediatric Surgery at the Bayero University, Kano State, had in the interview decried the increase in cancer cases among children and young adults in Nigeria. He said, “Cancer cases in Nigeria have been on the rise. What we see in the last fi.
