Emily Chan
New research has shown that colon cancer is becoming more prevalent in younger adults. Currently, the recommended age to have a colonoscopy is 45 years old, but if you are younger and experiencing symptoms such as bloody stool and prolonged diarrhea, it is possible to be tested at an earlier age.
TikToker Bri Mahon (@brimahon) recently got diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer at age 31, and she’s sharing some of the symptoms she experienced that led to her receiving a diagnosis.
During the past few years, Bri has had a lot of general gut issues, such as bloating and other symptoms that seemed more related to irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
She also has been very careful with what she eats and even cut out gluten, dairy, and soy from her diet. Aside from that, she has taken allergy tests and blood tests, and nothing concerning came up.
About two years ago, Bri started to notice a change in her anxiety levels. She was having panic attacks and felt extremely fatigued.
Just this past year, Bri gave birth to twins. Shortly after giving birth, she started noticing blood in her stool, the cause of which she assumed was just hemorrhoids due to pregnancy.
In addition, her IBS symptoms were flaring up, but she chalked that up to stress, anxiety, and depression since her sons were born prematurely and were in the NICU.
But when the blood in her stool became a more regular occurrence, Bri began to get concerned. At first, the blood was red, but then it turned darker. Her need to go to the bathroom seemed excessive and out of control.
Bri called her doctor and received a referral to a gastroenterologist, otherwise known as a GI doctor. The doctor thought Bri had an autoimmune disease, but after getting a colonoscopy, it was confirmed that Bri had colon cancer.
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