Colon cancer starts in the colon, and rectal cancer starts in the rectum. These are both part of the digestive system. This is where food is broken down to make energy and where the body gets rid of solid waste poop or stool. In the picture above you can see where the colon and rectum are inside the body. In most cases, colon and rectal cancers grow slowly over many years.

What Causes Rectal Discharge?



If You Have Colon or Rectal Cancer
Sometimes anal cancer causes no symptoms at all. But bleeding is often the first sign of the disease. The bleeding is usually minor. At first, most people assume the bleeding is caused by hemorrhoids painful, swollen veins in the anus and rectum that may bleed.


What you need to know about anal cancer
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About 90 percent of colon and rectal cancer patients initially thought they had hemorrhoids because of symptoms such as rectal itching and rectal bleeding. Therefore, the belief that you have hemorrhoids could actually be a symptom of colon cancer. If you are experiencing any new signs of rectal bleeding, no matter what your age, you should consult your doctor immediately, especially if it is a new symptom. Hemorrhoids tend to flare and then go away, so bleeding patterns are more erratic and circumstantial. Constipation will exacerbate rectal bleeding, but you will find that your symptoms will gradually disappear.