There are four different stages of colon cancer, which greatly affect the survival rates for patients. Early detection through screening procedures is a necessary step in treating this potentially deadly disease. Most people are urged to begin annual fecal occult blood tests and a colonoscopy every 10 years after the age 50, yet genetic screening to search for mutations of the glycosylation enzymes prior to that can let individuals know if they are predisposed to this type of cancer.

With colon cancer, the initial stage, which is Stage 0, is found in the epithelial tissue of the innermost lining of the colon. Here, doctors find cells that are abnormal but have not yet mobilized into full-blown cancer. To treat this stage, doctors will perform a polypectomy, which is a local excision to remove the tumor and surrounding tissue. This treatment is usually considered curative and often no further problems develop if caught early during colon cancer screening tests. In Stage I, the cancer has spread beyond the innermost layer to the second and third layers, as well as the inside wall of the colon. According to the National Cancer Institute’s most recent data (1991 to 2000), there is a 93% survival rate for colon cancer patients with Stage I cancer.

During Stage II of colon cancer, the tumors have evolved past the middle layers of the colon to the tissues around the rectum and outermost colon layers (II-A) and beyond the thick, muscular colon wall into nearby organs like the bowels, bladder, uterus or prostate (II-B). The survival rate for II-A is 85% and 72% for II-B. After that, the carcinoid tumors may spread to infect three nearby lymph nodes, which are normally used to fight off invaders (III-A). They may also infect three lymph nodes, nearby colorectal tissue and the entire colon wall (III-B) or to four or more lymph nodes, surrounding tissues, the colon wall and nearby organs (III-C). Patients at Stage III-A have an 83% survival rate, III-B have a 64% survival rate and the more serious III-C have just a 44% survival rate.

The last stage of colon cancer is Stage IV, which is the most advanced stage after the metastatic colon cancer has spread into multiple lymph nodes and organ systems, often affecting the liver and the lungs. Once the cancer has gotten to this point, the survival rate is just 8%! As a result, doctors recommend getting a fecal occult blood test done every year after 50. Additionally, a colonoscopy should be done every 10 years. To prevent colon cancer, it’s important to exercise, abstain from smoking or alcohol, and eat a diet limited in saturated fats/processed or red meat, but one that is high in fruits, fiber and vegetables.

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