Roundup: Rectal Cancer Rates Rising — Now One-Third of All Colorectal Cancer Cases; and More News

Rectal Cancer Incidence Rising as Colorectal Cancer Patients are Getting Younger: New Data Finds

For decades, colorectal cancer was primarily a concern for older generations. However, a new report released by the American Cancer Society (ACS) reveals a sharp divide in cancer trends. While rates continue to drop for older adults, colorectal cancer is rising significantly in people under 65.

The report, Colorectal Cancer Statistics 2026, highlights a specific and concerning increase: rectal cancer now makes up nearly one third — 32 percent compared to 27 percent in the mid-2000s — of all colorectal cancer diagnoses.

The Shift Toward Younger Adults

The new data shows that colorectal cancer rates are moving in two opposite directions. Prevention efforts are working for seniors, but younger adults are facing a new reality.

The impact of this shift is substantial. For adults under age 50, colorectal cancer has become the No. 1 cause of cancer-related death. In 2026 alone, doctors expect to diagnose about 200 people under the age of 65 every single day.

"After decades of progress, the risk of dying from colorectal cancer is climbing in younger generations," said Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director at the ACS, in a news release. She noted that this uptick suggests environmental factors or lifestyle changes are driving the disease.

Lifestyle Factors and Missed Opportunities

Why is this happening? Researchers estimate that more than half of these cancers are linked to lifestyle habits we can change. These risk factors include:

• Smoking

• Unhealthy diets

• High alcohol consumption

• Physical inactivity

• Excess body weight

However, the biggest missed opportunity is screening. Getting screened for colorectal cancer can prevent cancer by finding growths (polyps) before they turn cancerous, or it can catch the disease early when it is highly treatable.

The report found that half of all diagnoses in people under 50 occur in those aged 45 to 49. This group is eligible for screening, yet only 37 percent actually get tested.

The Danger of Waiting

Because younger people often don't suspect cancer, and screening rates are low, the disease is often caught too late. Three out of four colorectal cancers in adults under 50 are diagnosed at an advanced stage. This means the cancer has already spread to nearby lymph nodes or distant organs.

When caught early (local stage), the 5-year survival rate is 95 percent. When caught late, treatment becomes much more difficult.

The recommended age to begin colorectal cancer screening is 45 years old. If you are 45 or older and haven't been screened, talk to your doctor immediately. If you are younger than 45 but have a family history of the disease or notice symptoms — such as changes in bathroom habits, blood in the stool, or abdominal pain — talk to your doctor about getting screened.

Learn more about colorectal screenings.

Heart Risk in Women May Begin at Lower Levels of Coronary Plaque, Study Finds

Women may face an increased risk of serious heart events at lower levels of coronary artery plaque compared with men, according to new research published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. The findings suggest that more specific thresholds may be needed when evaluating heart disease using advanced imaging.

Plaque and Future Heart Risk

The study analyzed data from the PROMISE trial (Prospective Multicenter Imaging Study for Evaluation of Chest Pain), focusing on patients who underwent coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA). Coronary CTA is a specialized heart scan that uses contrast dye and CT imaging to visualize plaque buildup inside the coronary arteries—the vessels that supply blood to the heart.

Researchers evaluated 4,267 patients with stable chest pain, including 2,199 women. The average age was 60. Participants were followed for a median of just over two years. Investigators measured total coronary plaque volume and plaque burden. Plaque burden refers to the percentage of the artery’s volume occupied by plaque.

Plaque was categorized as calcified (hardened), noncalcified (softer), or low-attenuation plaque, a higher-risk subtype of soft plaque. Researchers tracked major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), defined as death, heart attack (myocardial infarction), or hospitalization for unstable angina—sudden chest pain caused by reduced blood flow to the heart.

Women Show Risk at Lower Plaque Levels

Plaque was less common in women than in men (55 percent versus 75 percent), and women had lower overall plaque volume. However, total plaque burden was similar between sexes. Rates of major adverse cardiac events were relatively close: 2.3 percent in women compared with 3.4 percent in men.

The key finding was that cardiovascular risk began rising at lower plaque burden levels in women. For total plaque burden, risk increased above average (hazard ratio greater than 1.0) at 20 percent plaque burden in women, compared with 28 percent in men. A hazard ratio estimates how much risk increases over time; a value of 1.5 means a 50 percent higher risk compared to baseline.

That 50 percent higher risk threshold was reached at 32 percent plaque burden in women, but not until 42 percent in men. A similar pattern was seen with noncalcified plaque. In women, risk began increasing at 7 percent noncalcified plaque burden, compared with 9 percent in men. A hazard ratio of 1.5 was reached at 13 percent in women versus 20 percent in men.

Implications for Diagnosis and Treatment

The differences remained even after adjusting for standard atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk scores, which estimate heart risk based on factors such as age, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, diabetes, and smoking status.

Researchers conclude that women may experience a sharper rise in cardiovascular risk at lower levels of coronary plaque buildup. These findings support sex-specific interpretation of coronary CTA results, which could help clinicians identify higher-risk women earlier and consider preventive treatments sooner.

The study adds to growing evidence that heart disease can present differently in women and underscores the importance of tailored approaches to cardiovascular risk assessment.

Heart Attack Deaths Rising in Younger Adults, Women at Higher Risk

Over the past several years, heart attack deaths have increased among adults under the age of 55. A new study reveals that between 2011 and 2022, more young adults died from their first heart attack, with women in this age group facing a greater risk than men.

The research, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, analyzed nearly one million hospitalizations. It highlights a significant shift in who is most vulnerable to fatal heart attacks, a condition often thought to primarily affect older men.

Understanding the Types of Heart Attacks

Researchers examined two types of heart attacks. The first, a STEMI (ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction), is a severe attack caused by a complete blockage of a heart artery. The second, an NSTEMI (non-STEMI), is less severe and results from a partial blockage.

For the more severe STEMI heart attacks, deaths in hospitals rose by 1.2 percent among adults aged 18-54 during the study period. Women consistently had higher death rates than men for both types of heart attacks. For a STEMI, 3.1 percent of women died in the hospital, compared to 2.6 percent of men.

The Role of Nontraditional Risk Factors

Traditional risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol were not the strongest predictors of death in the hospital for this younger group. Instead, what researchers call "nontraditional" risk factors played a larger role. These include low income, kidney disease, and the use of non-tobacco drugs. The study found that younger women were more likely to have these nontraditional risk factors than men of the same age.

Another key finding was that while women experienced similar rates of complications as men, they often received fewer procedures to diagnose and treat the cause of their heart attack.
This study underscores the need for a new perspective on heart attack risk. It's not just an older person's disease.

For younger adults, especially women, factors beyond traditional health metrics are proving to be critically important. Experts suggest that improving how doctors assess risk to include these nontraditional factors could help save more lives. This new data calls for greater awareness and earlier identification of heart attack risk in people under 55, the AHA states.