American doctors have recorded a mysterious increase in appendix cancer among young people

After the death of 42-year-old actor Adan Canto from appendix cancer, American doctors drew attention to the increase in such cases. Over the past two decades, the incidence of this type of cancer in young people has increased by 200%.

Doctors are warning of a mysterious rise in appendix cancer cases among young people after actor Adan Canto died from the disease aged 42. This type of cancer is very rare, with fewer than 1,000 cases diagnosed each year in the United States, equivalent to one to three cases per million people.

Appendiceal cancer is easy to ignore in its early stages and its symptoms, including bloating and abdominal pain, are attributed to other causes, increasing the risk that the cancer will only be diagnosed in later stages when it is more difficult to treat.

Doctors are unsure of the reason for the rise, but attribute it to an unexplained rise in colon cancer rates, with more cases being reported among younger people.

Appendiceal cancer, writes the Daily Mail, is a type of cancer that grows from cells in the colon.

Doctors are unsure about the function of the appendix: Some experts say it may serve as a repository for beneficial bacteria, while others believe it is an evolutionary remnant from a time when human ancestors ate more plants.

There are two types of appendix cancer: epithelial and neuroendocrine. Epithelial cancer of the appendix grows from the cells that make up the lining of the appendix. This leads to the accumulation of mucin, a jelly-like substance that protects the lining of the stomach, intestines and appendix.

When too much mucin accumulates, it causes the appendix to rupture. Neuroendocrine appendiceal cancer, the most common form of the disease, develops from enterochromaffin cells, which are involved in digestion and intestinal movement.

Symptoms of the disease are vague. According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), most cases of appendiceal cancer do not cause symptoms at first. As the tumor grows, the cancer can cause appendicitis, or inflammation of the appendix.

There is also a risk that it can cause ascites (water in the abdomen), as well as bloating, pain, an enlarged waist, changes in bowel movements and even infertility.

Some patients may also experience nausea, vomiting, and a feeling of overeating soon after eating.

The lack of symptoms in the early stages means the disease is often discovered at this stage by chance – if someone comes in for an appendectomy or scan for another condition.

A 2020 study published in the journal Gastroenterology found that while the number of people undergoing appendectomies (removal of the appendix) has remained stable over the years, cases of appendiceal cancer have increased.

They said this may be due to it being mistaken for more common diseases (appendicitis, as well as colon cancer, which is increasingly being diagnosed in young people).

There is no consensus on the reasons for this bad trend. Some experts blame rising cases of diabetes and obesity, fungal infections and overuse of antibiotics.

Lead researcher Andreana Golovaty from Vanderbilt University Medical Center said, “The potential misclassification of appendiceal cancer as colon cancer is a barrier to the discovery of disease-specific risk factors and tumor biomarkers, which will have implications for risk assessment, screening, surveillance and treatment.”

Smoking is a risk factor for appendiceal cancer, according to the Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida. In addition, the center identified a family history of multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 1 as a potential risk factor. MEN1 causes tumors to form along the endocrine glands that produce hormones.

Research shows that 67 to 97% of patients diagnosed with neuroendocrine tumor live more than five years after diagnosis. But in patients whose cancer is found in later stages and when it has spread to other parts of the body, the rate is lower.