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Do young patients have different clinical presentation of colorectal cancer causing delay in diagnosis?

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International Journal of Colorectal Disease Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

The incidence of colorectal cancer is increasing among young patients. In these patients, colorectal cancer is believed to have a poorer prognosis because it is more aggressive and diagnosed at later stages; however, the behavior of these tumors in young patients remains to be elucidated. We investigated the impact of time interval between onset of symptoms and diagnosis (TISD) at the pathologic stage of colorectal cancer in young patients.

Methods

The medical records of 215 patients with colorectal adenocarcinoma were reviewed. Patients were divided into two groups according to age. The young group (age < 50 years) consisted of 66 patients, and the older group (age ≥ 50 years) of 149 patients. Clinical variables, TISD, pathologic stage, operative mortality, and oncologic outcomes were compared between groups.

Results

The older group had less abdominal pain (74.0 vs. 56.0 %, p = 0.0129). In multivariate analysis, the following variables were independently associated with tumor pathologic stage: personal history of inflammatory bowel disease (p < 0.0001), family history of familial adenomatous polyposis (p = 0.00100), and smoking (p = 0.0070). Both groups had similar rates regarding pathologic stage (I, 15 vs. 22 %; II, 22 vs. 24 %; III, 27 vs. 16 %; IV, 37 vs. 38 %, p = 0.3380). There was no difference in overall survival [45 (69 %) vs. 84 (61 %), p = 0.2482] and cancer-free survival [36 (63 %) vs. 83 (62 %), p = 0.9218] between groups.

Conclusions

Young patients with colorectal cancer had clinical and pathological presentation similar to that of older patients.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Coloproctology Service, Hospital Universitário de Brasília, Universidade de Brasília, Center of Surgical Clinics, SGAN—Av. L2 Norte 604/605, Asa Norte, CEP: 70840-901, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    João Batista de Sousa, Caio Simões Souza, Leonardo de Castro Durães, Romulo Medeiros de Almeida, Antônio Carlos Nóbrega dos Santos & Paulo Gonçalves de Oliveira

  2. Division of Surgery, School of Medicine, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    João Batista de Sousa, Romulo Medeiros de Almeida & Paulo Gonçalves de Oliveira

  3. State Department of Health of the Federal District, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    Maria Bianca Fernandes

  4. Department of Statistics, Institute of Exact Sciences, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    Eduardo Freitas da Silva

  5. Secretaria do Centro de Clínicas Cirúrgicas, Hospital Universitário de Brasília, SGAN—Avenida L2 Norte 604/605, Asa Norte, CEP: 70840-901, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    João Batista de Sousa

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  1. João Batista de Sousa
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  2. Caio Simões Souza
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  3. Maria Bianca Fernandes
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  4. Leonardo de Castro Durães
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  5. Romulo Medeiros de Almeida
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  6. Antônio Carlos Nóbrega dos Santos
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  7. Eduardo Freitas da Silva
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  8. Paulo Gonçalves de Oliveira
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Correspondence to João Batista de Sousa.

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de Sousa, J.B., Souza, C.S., Fernandes, M.B. et al. Do young patients have different clinical presentation of colorectal cancer causing delay in diagnosis?. Int J Colorectal Dis 29, 519–527 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00384-013-1824-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00384-013-1824-4

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