Anderson Regional Health System encourages colon cancer screenings during awareness month

MERIDIAN, Miss. (WTOK) - March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.

News 11 spoke with Anderson Regional Health System about this type of cancer and they said it is really common but very preventable.

During this month, Gastroenterologist Dr. Greg Thaggard wants to raise awareness and encourage screenings to be able to detect this disease as soon as possible.

“Colon cancer is very common. It occurs in about one and 25 people in their lifetime. The cancer forms from small polyp growths in the colon that over time typically eight to ten years can turn into cancer. The main goal of colon cancer screenings is to find these pre-cancerous growths before cancer occurs,” said Dr. Thaggard.

Dr. Thaggard said symptoms can vary from person to person but can include changes in bowel habits or bowel function, bleeding, and abdominal pain. There can also be no symptoms.

Colon cancer screenings are recommended every 10 years for people 45-years-old and up.

If you have a family history of colon cancer, you may need to get screenings more frequently.

You are encourage to call Anderson Regional Health System at 601 -553 – 6657 to schedule your screening.

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