Colon cancer survival higher in younger women: Study

Colorectal cancer is the third most common cause of death. It can occur at any age, but generally strikes people over the age of 40. The risk increases with age.

Dr. Heinz-Josef Lenz, co-director of gastrointestinal oncology and colorectal cancer at the University of Southern California/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, and co-author of the study stated, "We've known for a while that estrogen prevents colorectal cancer, but this is the first study to suggest it may improve outcomes once you have colorectal cancer.”

Gender disparity in survival rate observed
To understand the role of estrogen, Lenz and his colleagues analyzed the medical records of about 53,000 patients with advanced colorectal cancer between 1988 and 2004.

The researchers noted that survival rate for women in the age bracket of 18 to 44 years was 17 months as opposed 14 months for the opposite sex in the same age.

The rate of survival for both the sexes was practically equal in the 45 to 54 age group. However, this survival benefit disappeared with advancing years.

Women patients 55 years and above exhibited a shorter rate of endurance than men. It was an average of seven months for the fairer sex as compared to nine months for men.

This benefit was evident among young women in the ethnic groups also."I think it's a very consistent picture," Lenz said.

New treatment options beneficial
The findings suggest that estrogen may be playing a vital role in helping women diagnosed with advanced colon cancer to survive longer.

However, Lenz and his team felt the new treatment techniques available could also be a contributing factor in the gender disparity among younger patients after 2000.

“Up until eight or nine years ago we had only one drug (5- fluorouracil) to treat colorectal cancer,” Lenz says. “Now we have many more treatment options and this research suggests that young women benefit more from these drugs than men.”

The results of the study are published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

More on colorectal cancer
Colon cancer is one of the most preventable forms of cancer. It often starts with non-cancerous growths (called polyps) that develop on the lining of the colon and rectum.

Polyps can become cancerous, but if they are detected in the early stages through screening they can be treated successfully.

Certain factors are linked to increased risk including a family history of colorectal cancer; a personal history of breast, uterine, or ovarian cancer; and inflammatory bowel disease.