Hi everyone, I’m a 34-year-old male and I’m really scared right now. I can’t sleep because I keep worrying it might be colon cancer, especially with all the stories about younger people getting it. I have an upcoming colonoscopy and the anxiety is bad.
• Bright red blood on toilet paper and sometimes in/on stool (can be heavy at times). I usually feel pain right before or when the bleeding happens — it’s a clear warning sign.
• Occasional pain near butt crack/lower back.
• Mildly flattened stools occasionally (a little flat, not perfectly round on a few pieces) — nowhere near ribbon or pencil-thin, and not constant.
• Diagnosed with hemorrhoids years ago on prior exam.
• Never anemic. CEA blood test normal in 2024.
• Past episodes of feeling faint, racing heart, and high blood pressure.
• No major changes in bowel habits, no weight loss, no dark/tarry stools.
- grandfather died at 59 from colon cancer.
Background: Anxious about rising colon cancer in younger adults. The bleeding + pain seems more consistent with hemorrhoids or anal fissure, but the volume and mild stool shape changes have me nervous ahead of my colonoscopy.
Anyone with similar experiences (pain before bleeding, mild flattening, heavy bright red blood) that turned out to be benign?