By Kat Bergeron

Mar. 27, 2008 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) --
Leo Burton was in remarkable health for 72. He needed none of the heart and other drugs typical for his age, and he felt great, had no bad health symptoms and looked forward to repeating the long, productive lives of his own parents because he'd whipped an early prostate cancer.

Then Burton heard a media report that advised everyone at age 50 should have a colon cancer screening. He was 12 years past that age and hadn't had one so he scheduled a colonoscopy.

The procedure revealed two polyps: one benign, the other a Stage 3 cancer that had broken through the wall of his colon. Surgery and debilitating chemotherapy followed. So did a bout with liver cancer, not an uncommon occurrence with colorectal cancer. Burton faced more surgery and more chemo.

"I was so stupid. There is no other way of looking at not getting a colonoscopy earlier," said Burton, who lives in Biloxi with his wife, Mary. "A colonoscopy would have revealed the polyp before it became cancerous. I wouldn't have faced two surgeries and chemo."

In Mississippi this year, 590 people are expected to die of colon cancer and 1,470 new cases will be diagnosed. Nationwide, about 50,000 are expected to die.

"The lesson is to do the things that the medical experts recommend. Anyone who doesn't get a colonoscopy after age 50 is just plain stupid. If you think going through the colonoscopy is a pain, unpleasant and embarrassing, try going through surgery and six months of chemotherapy."

Burton, now free of cancer but facing a lifetime of medical follow-ups, has become a walking advertisement for early detection of colon cancer, the No. 2 cancer killer of U.S. men and women.

"My recommendation across the board is to see a doctor and ask the questions and if your doctor isn't smart enough to say you need to be screened, insist on it or go to another doctor," said Burton, a retired electrical engineer and large-machine designer. "Whenever you go to the doctor, think about it the night before and make notes so you cover all bases."

Burton has agreed to share his story because this is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and he wants to convince others of the importance of early detection.

"Colon cancer can be prevented and it is one of the few cancers that can be stopped before it starts," said Hannah Bell, American Cancer Society communications specialist at the Mississippi Coast office of the Mid-South Division. "That's why it is important we educate people about early detection."

Part of that education includes screening at age 50, or earlier if there is a family history or certain inherited genetic mutations, or a personal history of chronic inflammatory bowel disease. ACS has recently updated its guidelines to include early detection methods of stool DNA samples and CT colongraphy, the latter being a virtual colonoscopy.

But the colonoscopy, which includes large intestine examination by a small camera on the end of a flexible tube, remains a proven standard. Polyps can be removed at that time for biopsies.

"People avoid getting a colonoscopy because that is a very intimate part of our bodies," said Bell. "But the facts stand: If colorectal cancer is found in earliest stages survival is 90 percent."

Tom Wall is another Mississippi Coast resident saved by a colonoscopy, but for him it was the second one because his cancerous polyp, tucked in a fold in his intestine, was missed in the first test. After successful surgery, removal of 18 inches of his colon and chemo, the Biloxi businessman was back strong as a city councilman. Then in August last year, liver cancer was discovered.

"They removed five-eighths of my liver, and now all the liver has grown back and I'm cancer-free," said the 69-year-old Wall, who completed another 6-month round of chemotherapy.

"I've been working real hard on my health. I exercise and eat right but I wasn't too concerned with all that before my diagnosis. Colon check-ups are essential. If the doctors catch it early, you're not going to die."

What are the factors?

--Risk factors for colon cancer: Certain inherited genetic mutations, personal or family history with the disease, personal history of chronic inflammatory bowel disease.

--Factors you can modify to prevent it: Obesity, physical inactivity, smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, a diet high in red or processed meat, or inadequate consumption of fruits and vegetables.


By the numbers

--Colon cancer is the second most common cancer in men and women, after lung cancer.

--Estimated 1,470 new cases of colon cancer in Mississippi in 2008.

--Estimated 148,810 new cases of colon cancer in United States in 2008.

--Estimated 590 deaths due to colon cancer in Mississippi in 2008.

--Estimated 49,960 deaths due to colon cancer in United States in 2008.

--Colon cancer incidence rates have decreased for most of the last two decades. The decline is steeper in the recent periods (2.3 percent each year from 1998-2004), partly due to an increase in screening.

--Risk of colon cancer increases with age. More than 90 percent of cases are diagnosed in people age 50 and over.

- AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY

Newstex ID: KRTB-0021-24067564