Colon Cancer Forum - Symptoms common to IBS and colon cancer

Cancer > Colon Cancer Forum > Symptoms common to IBS and colon cancer

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Q: Symptoms common to IBS and colon cancer

asked by: DoctorQuestion on January 21st, 2009

I have cramps feel like i need to go and after lots of straining go small amounts like pellets feces , after an hour of this i finally relieve myself with diarrhea (i also wake up with a bad headache when i have this episodes and feel better after i have the bowel movement) . I go every morning sometime i go just fine without pain and than i have bouts of episodes of what i just explain. Can this be IBS or something more serious like colon cancer?
Thanks for any info.

Replies(1)

Dr. Goce Aleksovski , MD

replied on January 22nd, 2009

Colon Cancer Answer A5462

The symptoms you reported might indicate that you are experiencing inflammatory bowel syndrome (IBS). There are several types of IBS depending whether diarrhea or constipation is predominant. In your case, IBS with the alternating stool pattern is the most likely diagnosis. Colon cancer is not associated with IBS, but can appear separately. Certain of the symptoms of colon cancer can be misinterpreted as IBS , leading to a late diagnosis.

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