Colorectal cancer in young people - a retrospective study

Abstract

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the most common malignancy of the gastrointestinal tract. The increasing prevalence of CRC in young subjects in recent times is reported. The aim of the paper was a retrospective analysis of the group of young people with colorectal cancer. ,br>Material and methods: The procedure, pathology and follow-up records of patients treated for CRC in the years 1994 and 2002 were reviewed. Tumour location, pathological features, CRC grading and staging as well as the kind of surgery were analysed. Furthermore, early postoperative mortality and overall survival rates were reviewed. Chi-square Pearson’s and Kaplan-Meier’s tests were used for statistical analysis.
Results: In the reviewed material, 13 (2,45%) out of 530 CRC patients were young subjects aged 26-40 years (2.45%). The rate of early postoperative complications was 26,92% with mortality rate of 5.38%. Though no major systemic complication was reported in subjects under 41 years of age, the site complication rate remained unchanged. An almost twice as high rate of advanced malignancy was found in this group (p < 0.005). No statistical significance in overall survival was found between the groups.
Conclusions: Colorectal cancer in young people is often an advanced malignancy (at the time of detection) as well as mucogenic (in type). There are no age-related differences in prognosis in CRC patients.