A dangerous germ from childhood can lead to cancer

An oncologist reveals the alarming reason for the rise in colon cancer in young people. It is a dangerous microbe from childhood that is in the intestines of one in five people.

It’s the phenomenon that has stunned doctors around the world: Bowel cancer, usually a disease of the elderly, has increased by 50% among young people in their 20s, 30s and 40s over the past 30 years. Now, in a fascinating discussion between two of the world’s leading cancer experts, a new theory has been put forward to explain this trend.

While acknowledging that there are likely “multiple” contributing factors, top experts have suggested that a common childhood infection may be partly responsible for the rise in colon cancer cases in the US.

In an interview given The Health FoundationCancer Research UK chief clinician Dr Charles Swanton spoke of “emerging data” showing that a specific type of E. coli bacterium contracted in childhood could “contribute to at least some of the cancer-initiating processes” .

Alarming evidence for this is provided by another cancer specialist, Dr. Kimmie Ng, an American early-onset colorectal cancer specialist, who has noticed that many of his young cases are actually children.

Cancer intestinal flu can cause blood in your stool, a change in bowel habits, a swelling in the bowel that can cause obstruction. Some people also experience weight loss as a result of these symptoms.

90% increase in colon cancers in young people under 34

“Although there is not necessarily published data on the rate of growth and whether it affects the pediatric population, at least anecdotally, we have certainly seen some children with colorectal cancer,” explained Dr. Kimmie Ng, director of the Young Onset Colorectal Cancer Center from the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in the US, quoted by the Daily Mail.

She added that the E. coli findings are “very challenging and very interesting” and that infection is likely to be a “very early event” in someone’s life: “This is consistent with our hypotheses that any exposure or trigger it probably happens in the early stages of life’.

She added that thyroid cancer was also on the rise, as well as kidney cancer, which is also on the rise in young people. Data from JAMA Surgery showed that a 90% increase in colon cancer is expected in people between the ages of 20 and 34.

E.coli PKS positive bacteria

The type of E. coli identified by experts is a specific strain known as PKS-positive E. coli. It is not related to outbreaks of food poisoning, but is thought to develop through interactions with the trillions of microbes in our gut.

Scientists aren’t entirely sure how PKS-positive E. coli develops, but a 2022 study found an association between the bacteria’s presence in colorectal cancers and Western-style diets. The study, published in the journal Nature, suggested that a person’s chance of developing bowel cancer may increase after being infected with this specific type of E.coli.

Scientists believe that this bacteria – thought to be present in one in five people, according to a 2023 study published in the journal Life Sciences – releases a toxin that can damage the cells lining the gut. According to the study, this can turn some cells into cancer cells over time.

Diet would not be the main trigger

Although our diets full of junk food, smoking and obesity are often blamed for the increase in cancer cases, experts say that these subtle changes in gut bacteria are much more likely to be a major factor. Dr. Ng says that in his experience, many of his patients are young and not obese. In fact, many young people diagnosed with bowel cancer lead healthy and active lifestyles, suggesting that obesity is not the only cause of this rise in cases.

“Many are triathletes and marathon runners, so it’s really puzzling why this happens,” she said. ‘That is, the hypothesis put forward is that the reason why the incidence is increasing among all cancers of the digestive system is this common theme of obesity as a risk factor. But I myself have not noticed this in the patients I have taken care of,” added the expert.

Dr. Swanton added that while many scientific studies say obesity is an important risk factor for early-onset colorectal cancer, he suggests this is not always the case: “My impression, at least clinically, is that this argument does not always work, and that many of these early-onset cancers are associated with people who are not obese or overweight,” said Dr. Swanton.