Jamaine Punzalan

Article (news)

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1771298490787Screenshot 2026-02-17 112119.jpg" style="width:960px;display:block;height:auto" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">National Cancer Institute, Unsplash </span></span></span></div><p>The death of US actor <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2026/2/12/james-van-der-beek-star-of-dawson-s-creek-dies-at-48-0717">James Van Der Beek</a> was just the latest reminder that colorectal cancer has been surging among people under 50 in recent years -- and no one knows why.</p><p>The &quot;Dawson&#x27;s Creek&quot; star died last week aged 48 after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer, also known as bowel cancer.</p><p>Fellow US actor<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/08/30/20/death-of-black-panther-star-spotlights-early-onset-colon-cancer"> Chadwick Boseman</a> of &quot;Black Panther&quot; fame died from the same disease in 2020 at the age of 43.</p><p>The rate of people under 50 being diagnosed with this cancer has risen by roughly a third since the 1990s, Helen Coleman, a cancer epidemiology professor at Queen&#x27;s University Belfast, told AFP.</p><p>It is now the leading cause of death from cancer among under-50s in the United States, according to research published in the JAMA journal last month.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/overseas/09/06/23/cancer-surging-among-under-50s-worldwide-study-says">Cancer surging among under-50s worldwide, study says</a></div><p>This &quot;sounds really scary,&quot; but the increase has come from a low starting point, Coleman emphasized.</p><p>The vast majority of cases are still among older people -- only six percent of all colorectal cancers are diagnosed in people under 50, according to her research in Northern Ireland.</p><p>And rates are stabilizing or even going down among older people in some areas because of better screening, she added.</p><p>However, young people are less likely to think they could be susceptible to this cancer, which was long considered to only be suffered by the elderly.</p><p>Once younger people finally get diagnosed, it is often too late -- as was the case with Van Der Beek.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>WHAT IS DRIVING THIS INCREASE? </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Similar to other cancers among young people, colorectal cancer has been linked with being overweight, having a bad diet, not exercising enough, drinking and smoking.</p><p>But these lifestyle factors are not enough to &quot;account for the massive change that we have seen in a relatively short time frame,&quot; Coleman said.</p><p>And many of the younger patients appear to have been in good health, including Van Der Beek, who was in great shape before being diagnosed in 2023.</p><p>&quot;I was biohacking, I was doing the saunas and the cold plunges and all of it -- and I had stage three cancer, and had no idea,&quot; the father of six told a US TV interview in December.</p><p>So what could be behind this relatively sudden increase?</p><p>&quot;We don&#x27;t know,&quot; Jenny Seligmann, a researcher specializing in colorectal cancer at the University of Leeds in the UK, told AFP.</p><p>This mystery has led researchers to look for other potential causes, including inside the microbiome, a vast ecosystem of microbes in our guts that remains little understood.</p><p>A study in the journal Nature last year discovered a &quot;really important first clue&quot; in this area, Coleman said.</p><p>It found that DNA mutations of a toxin called colibactin, which is caused by the common bacteria E.Coli, were much more common in younger people with colorectal cancer than in older patients.</p><p>But significantly more research is needed in this area.</p><p>For one, it is not known if young people simply tend to have more of this toxin than older people, Coleman pointed out.</p><p>There has also been research suggesting that repeatedly using antibiotics could be associated with early <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/03/24/23/colorectal-cancer-cases-among-younger-people-increasing-expert">colorectal cancer.</a></p><p>Seligmann said she was also seeing many different subtypes of colorectal cancer in her clinic, which suggests there is not a single cause behind the rise.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s going to be very difficult to pinpoint it to one cause,&quot; she said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/health-science/2025/3/27/colon-cancer-sa-pilipinas-sobrang-taas-na-paano-ito-agapan-at-gamutin-1446">Colon cancer sa Pilipinas &#x27;sobrang taas na&#x27;: Paano ito agapan at gamutin?</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>WHEN SHOULD SCREENING START? </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Before his death, a gaunt-looking Van Der Beek urged people with any symptoms to consider getting tested.</p><p>&quot;I want to shout from the rooftops -- if you are 45 or older, talk to your doctor,&quot; the father of six said.</p><p>The most noticeable symptom of colorectal cancer is changes in bowel movements -- such as diarrhea or constipation.</p><p>Other symptoms include blood in feces, unexplained weight loss and fatigue.</p><p>Because of the increasing number of younger cases, in 2021 the United States lowered the age it starts colorectal cancer screening from 50 to 45.</p><p>There have been calls for other countries to do the same. The UK and France start screening from age 50.</p><div><iframe width="1023" height="575" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/H10SEZfkmrE" title="Salamat Dok: Causes and symptoms of colon cancer" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>

<p>The death of US actor James Van Der Beek was just the latest reminder that colorectal cancer has been surging among people under 50 in recent years -- and no one knows why.</p>

The death of US actor James Van Der Beek was just the latest reminder that colorectal cancer has been surging among people under 50 in recent years -- and no one knows why.

Why are more under-50s getting colorectal cancer? 'We don't know'

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Why are more under-50s getting colorectal cancer? 'We don't know'

Agence France-Presse

Published February 17, 2026 11:26 AM PHT

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colorectal cancer

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