Polyps of the colon

Colon Polyps

Description of colon polyps

Polyps of the colon – growths on the lining of the colon or rectum. The colon and rectum – colon, that, in turn, It is part of the digestive system.

There are two most common types of polyps:

• Adenomatous polyps – may be increased over time and develop into cancer;
• Hyperplastic polyps – no increase in size and rarely become cancerous.

Causes of colon polyps

The causes of polyps in the colon known. As expected, This may be partially due to hereditary factors. There is a genetic disorder, called family polyposis. It causes thousands of adenomatous polyps in the intestine, over time develops into cancer.

Risk factors for colon polyps

Factors, that may increase the risk of colon polyps include:

• Age: senior 50 years;
• The presence of family members with colon polyps or colon cancer;
• Having last colon cancer;
• Overweight and obesity.

Symptoms of colon polyps

Symptoms of the disease are often missing and polyps are found only during an endoscopy or x-ray examination. If you have symptoms, They may include:

• Bleeding from the rectum;
• Diarrhea, constipation and / or bloating, which lasts for a certain period of time;
• Rarely – stomach ache.

Diagnosis of colon polyps

The doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history, and perform a physical examination. Tests may include:

• The doctor may need to survey the rectum and colon, as well as analysis of waste. For this purpose, applied:
  • Fecal;
  • Digital rectal examination;
  • Sigmoidoscopy;
  • Colonoscopy;
• Maybe, You will need to take pictures of the colon. For this purpose barium enema and X-rays;
• Maybe, you need to select the tissue samples to test for cancer cells. This can be done by biopsy.

Treatment of colon polyps

Depending on the size of the polyp, it can be removed. Larger polyps have a high risk to develop into cancer. They must be removed. Usually, polyps can be removed by colonoscopy.

If the polyps are very large, perhaps, You need to have surgery, to remove them. Your doctor may send the tissue from the removed polyps in the lab, to test for cancer.

Prevention of colon polyps

It is not clear, how it can be prevented colon polyps. Nonetheless, some guidelines to help you stay healthy and may help prevent not only polyps, and colon cancer:

• Eat more fiber with plenty of fruits, vegetables and whole grains;
• Reduce the amount of animal fat in your diet. There are many, not only in beef and other meat products, but also in the high-fat dairy products (cream, cream);
• Exercise regularly;
• Maintain a healthy weight;
• Avoid smoking;
• Consult your doctor for counseling and testing, if you need more 50 years;
• If polyps are found, requires more frequent inspection.