Pain. A large colon polyp can block part of your bowel, leading to crampy abdominal pain. Rectal bleeding. This can be a sign of colon polyps or cancer or other conditions, such as hemorrhoids or minor tears of the anus.
Symptoms of bowel polyps
But some larger polyps can cause: a small amount of slime (mucus) or blood in your poo (rectal bleeding) diarrhoea or constipation. pain in your tummy (abdominal pain)
Most people with polyps won't be aware of them as they produce no symptoms and are often discovered by accident. However, some larger polyps can cause: a small amount of rectal bleeding (blood in your stool) mucus to be produced when you open your bowels.
Colon polyps often develop silently, which means they usually don't cause symptoms. In some cases, the patient may notice signs such as: Blood in stool. Constipation or diarrhea that persists longer than a week.
Pain. A large colon polyp can block part of your bowel, leading to crampy abdominal pain. Rectal bleeding. This can be a sign of colon polyps or cancer or other conditions, such as hemorrhoids or minor tears of the anus.
Most polyps grow slowly and take from between 10 and 15 years to become cancerous. Due to this general time frame, most screenings are scheduled every 10 years which gives Colorectal Surgical Associates time to remove any polyps before they become cancerous.
Common Symptoms of Colon Polyps
Changes in Stool Color – Blood can wind up in your stool, often causing your stool to appear black or much darker in color. Anemia and Iron Deficiency – Colon polyps that bleed can lead to iron deficiency, resulting in fatigue and shortness of breath.
People who have had certain types of polyps removed during a colonoscopy. Most of these people will need to get a colonoscopy again after 3 years, but some people might need to get one earlier (or later) than 3 years, depending on the type, size, and number of polyps.
Most polyps do not cause symptoms. When they do, the most common symptom is bleeding from the rectum. A large polyp may cause cramps, abdominal pain, obstruction, or intussusception.
Fatigue can happen if polyps or tumors bleed into the digestive tract, leading to a loss of iron over time and possibly iron-deficiency anemia. A direct side effect of iron-deficiency anemia is that individuals to feel tired and short of breath.
Experts are not sure what causes colon polyps. It is probably a combination of environmental factors and genetics. However, certain people are at higher risk for getting them, especially if you: Are 45 years of age or older.
Pain. Large polyps can obstruct the bowel and cause abdominal pain or cramping. Bleeding. Small tears in your anus or hemorrhoids can lead to blood after a bowel movement.
Colon polyps and diverticulitis have similar symptoms that include: Abdominal pain. Bloating. Constipation.
Foods to limit
Research suggests that eating less of the following foods may have health benefits and may lower your chances of developing polyps: fatty foods, such as fried foods. red meat, such as beef and pork. processed meat, such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs, and lunch meats.
Ninety percent of cases occur after age 50, with males somewhat more likely to develop polyps than females; therefore, colon cancer screening is usually recommended starting at age 50 for both sexes. It takes approximately 10 years for a small polyp to develop into cancer.
If polyps are found and removed during a colonoscopy procedure, the recovery period will be slightly longer. After polyps are removed it can take up to a week for the patient to fully recover. During this time, patients should avoid all strenuous activities, which includes lifting anything over five pounds.
In most cases, no. Your doctor can't usually tell, simply by looking at a polyp during a colonoscopy, if it's cancerous. But if a polyp is found during your colonoscopy, your doctor will remove it and send it to a lab for a biopsy to check for cancerous or precancerous cells.
If your polyps do cause symptoms, you may experience: Bleeding from your rectum. Blood in your stool, which can show up as red streaks or make your stool look black. Fatigue, usually from anemia and a lack of iron in your body.
Large polyps can sometimes cause dull aching in your abdomen or lower back, similar to menstrual cramps.
As often as 40% of the time, a precancerous polyp — frequently a type called an adenoma — is found during a screening colonoscopy. Colon cancer is found during only in about 40 out of 10,000 screening colonoscopies, Dr. Sand said.
Average-risk patients should have their first colonoscopy at age 45 and follow-up screening every 10 years after that. Higher-risk patients should talk to their provider about their screening needs. “If we don't see anything, they can wait another 10 years.
If a polyp has cancerous cells, they will also biopsy nearby lymph nodes to determine if the cancer has spread or metastasized to other areas of the body. In this case radiation, chemotherapy or other therapies may be recommended. Colonoscopy screenings can be life saving!