Contrary to popular belief, polyps affect both men and women equally. Most colon polyps are initially non-cancerous. Nevertheless, as colon polyps continue to grow, they often develop into cancer of the colon. Colon cancer has become quite common in our society. In fact, nearly 1 in every 20 adult Americans will develop colon cancer in their lifetime.
Colon cancer is now the leading cause of cancer deaths in nonsmokers.
Only lung cancer takes a greater toll. It is not widely known that colon cancer now kills more women than breast cancer and more men than prostate cancer. But, there is good news. In the past, colon polyps located beyond the range of the proctoscope could only be removed by a major abdominal operation. Of course, this procedure required about a week of hospitalization and over a month of time lost from work for recovery.