Wednesday, 30 April 2025

Scientists Discover What Causes Colon Cancer In Young Adults

100 Percent Fed Up
Hits: 8

A new study has revealed what may be behind the uptick in colon cancer among young adults.

According to the American Cancer Society, the number of young adults diagnosed with colon cancer has doubled in the last decade.

A new study by the University of San Diego suggests that colibactin is to blame.

Colibactin is a toxin made by some strains of E. coli.

Dr. Ludmil Alexandrov, who is a lead author in the study, shared, “We believe this exposure occurs very early in life — likely during the first decade — when children are infected.”

Certainly anything is possible except the mRNA vaccine, right scientists?

Here’s what The New York Post reported:

A groundbreaking new study suggests that a gut-dwelling bacteria may be behind the recent surge in early-onset colorectal cancer cases.

The potential culprit? Colibactin, a toxin produced by certain strains of E. coli that thrive in the colon and rectum.

“We believe this exposure occurs very early in life — likely during the first decade — when children are infected,” Dr. Ludmil Alexandrov, senior study author and a professor at the University of California San Diego, told The Post.

In the US, the number of people under 55 being diagnosed has nearly doubled over the past decade, and more people are dying from the disease each year, according to the American Cancer Society.

“Until now, prior studies had not been able to identify a clear cause or even distinguish early-onset cases from those diagnosed later in life,” Alexandrov said. “Our study helps change that.”

Per UCSD:

In an effort to explain a modern medical mystery, an international team of researchers led by the University of California San Diego has identified a potential microbial culprit behind the alarming rise in early-onset colorectal cancer: a bacterial toxin called colibactin.

Produced by certain strains of Escherichia coli that reside in the colon and rectum, colibactin is a toxin capable of altering DNA. Now, scientists report that exposure to colibactin in early childhood imprints a distinct genetic signature on the DNA of colon cells—one that may increase the risk of developing colorectal cancer before the age of 50.

The new study, published on April 23 in Nature, analyzed 981 colorectal cancer genomes from patients with both early- and late-onset disease across 11 countries with varying colorectal cancer risk levels. The findings show that colibactin leaves behind specific patterns of DNA mutations that were 3.3 times more common in early-onset cases (specifically in adults under 40) than in those diagnosed after the age of 70. These mutation patterns were also particularly prevalent in countries with high incidence of early-onset cases.

“These mutation patterns are a kind of historical record in the genome, and they point to early-life exposure to colibactin as a driving force behind early-onset disease,” said study senior author Ludmil Alexandrov, professor in the Shu Chien-Gene Lay Department of Bioengineering and the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at UC San Diego, who is also a member of UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center and Deputy Director of Sanford Stem Cell Fitness and Space Medicine Center.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport.

View the original article here.


Source link

Search