Researchers have uncovered a disturbing link between a highly aggressive form of colon cancer and a beverage enjoyed daily by nearly two-thirds of Americans.
This year, the American Cancer Society projects that approximately 107,320 individuals in the United States will be diagnosed with this particular type of cancer. This figure includes an estimated 54,510 men and 52,810 women who will face this challenging diagnosis.
Of particular concern is the rise in colorectal cancer cases—cancer affecting the intestines, rectum, and colon—among individuals under 50 years old, increasing by about three percent each year since 2011.
While there has been a decrease in cases among those aged 65 and over between 1998 and 2019, there has been a notable increase in cases for individuals aged 20 to 49 during the same period.
While the exact cause of this trend remains unclear, a medical oncologist’s research suggests that sugary drinks might be a contributing factor.
Dr. Emma Schatoff from New York City’s Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center shared her insights with the Daily Mail: “Young people were coming in with metastatic disease, or cancer that had spread everywhere – it was in their liver, lungs, other organs – and they were very surprised.
“We looked at anything that could have raised their risk level. We looked at inflammatory bowel disease and medication use, but found no difference there.
“Then we looked at diet, and found no link with processed foods or red meat. But we did find a link with high sugar foods in stage four patients diagnosed with the disease for the first time.”
She added: “We defined a high sugar diet as daily consumption of high sugar foods, such as a [single] soda or a candy.”
Even more concerning is the fact that 63 percent of American adults report consuming sugar-sweetened beverages at least once daily, as indicated by the CDC.
In her study, Dr. Schatoff, along with her colleagues, examined 303 early-onset colon cancer patients who completed a questionnaire. The average age of participants was 42, and 51 percent were female.
Tragically, 112 participants had stage four cancer, while the remaining 191 were diagnosed with stages one through three.
As noted by Dr. Schatoff, the study found no correlation between cancer and the consumption of fruits, vegetables, fish, poultry, red meat, processed meat, or dairy products.
However, those with diets high in sugar were found to be at a significantly increased risk of having their cancer progress to more aggressive stages, spreading to other parts of their bodies.
If you are dealing with any of these concerns and wish to speak to someone in confidence, you can reach out to the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345 or use their live chat feature, available 24/7 throughout the year.