How does rectal cancer differ from colon cancer?
Answers
Differences Between Colon and Rectal Cancer
Sex predilection: Colon cancer is distributed pretty much equally between the sexes, whereas rectal cancer is somewhat more common in men than women.
Anatomy: The blood supply, lymphatic drainage, and nerve supply of the colon and rectum are quite different. This is important as cancers metastasize (spread) to other regions of the body via the bloodstream and lymphatic vessels.
Disease recurrence: This may be the biggest differentiator. Generally speaking, rectal cancer is more difficult to cure, with recurrence developing in between 15 and 45 percent of patients.
Invasion of nearby tissues: Colon cancer, being in the abdomen, has much more "room" around it, whereas rectal cancer occurs in a much tighter spot. Rectal cancer, therefore, has the greater chance of spreading to nearby tissue.
Surgery: Surgery for colon cancer may be recommended at any stage of the disease, while surgery alone without chemo or radiation therapy is typically prescribed for stages 1 and 2. By contrast, surgery for rectal cancer can be performed from stages 1 to 3, often in conjunction with chemo and radiation therapy.
Difficulty of Surgery: Surgery for colon cancer is much simpler compared to rectal cancer. With rectal surgery, it is more difficult to access the tumor and to avoid many of the structures surrounding it.
Colostomy: People who have undergone rectal cancer surgery have a greater likelihood of a permanent colostomy. This is because the removal of the anal sphincter is often required, which can neither be replaced nor reconstructed.
Radiation therapy: Radiation is not commonly used for colon cancer but is for rectal cancer (predominately stage 2 or 3).
Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy for colon cancer is often used as an adjunct to surgery in stages 3 and 4 (and sometimes 2). With rectal cancer, chemotherapy may be used even with stage 1 disease.
Postoperative complications: People with rectal cancer are more likely to have post-surgical complications when compared to those with colon cancer surgery, who are more prone to short-term medical complications.
Colon cancer can start anywhere in the colon, which is about 5 feet long and absorbs water from stool. Rectal cancer starts in the rectum, which is the last 12 centimeters (nearly 5 inches) of the colon. It's where the body stores stools until you have a bowel movement.