Don't Wait Until "Advanced" Stage! Are You Doing the Three Levels of Prevention for Colorectal Cancer Correctly?

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors. Since the 1990s, the number of new colorectal cancer cases in China has been continuously rising, growing rapidly at a rate of 1.5-2% each year.

Since 2016, colorectal cancer has become the second most common malignant tumor in terms of new cases, and it continues to grow. According to the latest 2022 epidemiological data released in 2024, although there appears to be a sign of decline, it remains firmly in second place for new cases.

In 2016, there were 408,000 new colorectal cancer cases in China, ranking second in the number of new cases.

Image Source: Journal of the National Cancer Center

1. Higher in Males than Females

Similar to other countries worldwide, since records began, the number of new colorectal cancer cases each year has been higher in males than in females. The latest overall incidence rate (released in 2024) is 20.19 per 100,000, with 24.83 per 100,000 for males and 15.97 per 100,000 for females.

2. Higher in Urban than Rural Areas

This may be related to factors such as dietary patterns, lifestyle habits, and willingness to undergo examination and treatment.

3. Higher in Southern than Northern Regions

4. Higher in Eastern than Central and Western Regions

5. Higher in Economically Developed than Less Developed Areas

1. Middle-aged Patients as the Main Group

After the age of 40, the incidence of colorectal cancer begins to increase significantly; it is particularly high in the 45-59 age group, accounting for over 50% of cases.

2. High Incidence in Elderly Patients

The situation is similar for male and female patients, with a high incidence in the elderly. The age-standardized incidence rate for males in the 80-84 age group is as high as 200 per 100,000, and for females, it is also over 150 per 100,000.

3. Continuously Rising Incidence in Young Adults

This characteristic is similar to the global trend. Currently, the proportion of patients under the age of 25 has exceeded 10%. This may be related to the lifestyle habits of young adults, such as prolonged sitting, a preference for low-fiber, high-fat diets, and especially excessive consumption of red meat.

The 2019 GBD (Global Burden of Disease) study showed that alcohol consumption, high intake of processed meat in the diet, high intake of red meat, low calcium intake, low dietary fiber intake, low dairy product intake, obesity, hyperglycemia, low physical activity levels, and smoking are all risk factors for colorectal cancer.