Symptoms of bowel cancer
Symptoms of bowel cancer can include a change in your normal bowel habit or blood in your poo. These can also be symptoms for other conditions, but it’s important to see your doctor.
Bowel cancer can start in the large bowel (colon cancer) or back passage (rectal cancer). It is also called colorectal cancer.
Take a look at this 1 minute video about the symptoms of bowel cancer.
What are the symptoms of bowel cancer?
The symptoms can include:
A change in your normal bowel habit - such as needing to go for a poo more often, or feeling like you haven't emptied your bowels properly.
Bleeding from your bottom or blood in your poo.
Losing weight when you haven't been trying to.
A pain or lump in your tummy.
Feeling a lot more tired than usual.
Feeling breathless.
Remember, these symptoms can be caused by other conditions, not just cancer. But if you do have any of these symptoms or anything else that is not normal for you, go to see your GP. They can examine you and do further tests if necessary.
What are the possible symptoms of bowel cancer?
The symptoms of bowel (colorectal) cancer can include:
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bleeding from the back passage (rectum) or blood in your poo
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a change in your normal bowel habit, such as looser poo, pooing more often or constipation
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a lump that your doctor can feel in your back passage or tummy (abdomen)
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a feeling of needing to strain in your back passage (as if you need to poo), even after opening your bowels
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losing weight when you haven’t been trying to
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pain in your abdomen or back passage
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tiredness and breathlessness caused by a lower than normal level of red blood cells (anaemia)
Sometimes cancer can block the bowel. This is called a bowel obstruction. The symptoms include:
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cramping pains in the abdomen
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feeling bloated
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constipation and being unable to pass wind
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being sick
A bowel obstruction is an emergency. You should see your doctor quickly or go to A&E at your nearest hospital if you think you have a bowel obstruction.
Blood in your poo
Blood in your poo (stools or faeces) can be a sign of bowel cancer. But it is often due to other causes. See your GP if you are worried about any symptoms that you think could be caused by cancer in the bowel.
Most often, blood in the poo is from piles (haemorrhoids), especially if it is bright red, fresh blood. Piles are swollen blood vessels in the back passage. These blood vessels are fragile and can easily get damaged when you have a poo, causing a little bleed.
Blood from higher up in the bowel doesn't look bright red. It goes dark red or black and can make your poo look like tar. This type of bleeding can be a sign of cancer higher up the bowel. Or it could be from a bleeding stomach ulcer for example.
It is important to go to your doctor if you have any bleeding and get checked.
Your doctor won't think you are wasting their time. It’s very likely that you’ll have a rectal examination. This means the doctor puts a gloved finger into your back passage and feels for anything abnormal.
Tests
Your GP might arrange a test that looks for tiny traces of blood in a sample of your poo. The traces of blood might be too small to see. This is a test called FIT (Faecal Immunochemical Test). You do this test yourself at home.
Or your doctor might send you to the hospital for further tests.
