CLEVELAND — March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and you may not realize it's the leading cancer killer of men under age 50 and the second leading cause of cancer death for women under age 50. African Americans are also the most likely to die from it.
That's why 61-year-old Dana Saunders Sr. is sharing his story in hopes that other men heed his warning and not make the same mistake he did.
Colorectal cancer is nearly always treatable if caught early and can even be prevented through timely screening.
Because we're now seeing a rise in cases among people under age 50, the screening guidelines have dropped from age 50 to 45.
When Dana had his first colonoscopy, his doctor actually found and removed some polyps, which could have turned cancerous if they weren't discovered and removed. He was told to come back for his second colonoscopy in three to five years.
But not surprisingly, life got in the way, and even more tragically, Dana's mother actually developed advanced colon cancer that had spread throughout her body and cost her her life. Despite this, it took Dana nine years before he went back for that second colonoscopy screening test.
"That's when they found the tumor. It was devastating as you can imagine, but it was because I'd neglected to go back and get my screenings done," Dana said.
Fortunately for him, the cancer was stage 2 and only required surgery. But it was a very loud wake-up call he needed to hear.
Dana transformed his life. He became a vegan, started working out, lost weight and doesn't take his health for granted.
Dr. Ronald Charles, a colorectal surgeon at University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, is Dana's doctor and is proud of the way his patient refused to let his diagnosis define him.
He says it's frustrating to see black men neglect their health because they're afraid of what they may find out.
"Screening is so incredibly important, if you screen on time, you catch these things early and you can be cured from it," Dr. Charles said.
He added that African American men and women are 20% more likely to get colorectal cancer than any other racial group in the U.S. and 40% more likely to die from it. The reasons are similar to why it's also impacting younger people.
"I actually think it's the food and environmental factors. We we actually know that those two things actually play a role in what I would call traditional colon cancer, we know that things like red meat, lack of exercise, smoking, obesity, hypertension, are playing a big role in the numbers we're seeing right now," Dr. Charles said.
Dana hopes he can be an example to not only his two sons, but also his friends, because he doesn't want to see anyone else get a disease that could be prevented by a covered screening tool.