Additional Coverage:
- A 42-year-old thought blood in the toilet was pregnancy-related hemorrhoids. She had colorectal cancer. (businessinsider.com)
A “Pesky” Hemorrhoid Led This New Mom to a Stage 3b Colorectal Cancer Diagnosis
A woman in her early 40s initially brushed off bloody stools as hemorrhoids, only to be diagnosed with advanced colorectal cancer over a year later. Experts warn that rectal cancer is increasing in younger adults, emphasizing the critical need to destigmatize discussions about “toilet talk.”
Laura Behnke, a new mother in her early 40s, was focused on one thing: getting pregnant. After three unsuccessful rounds of in vitro fertilization (IVF), she was preparing for her fourth and final attempt.
When she first noticed blood in the toilet, she chalked it up to stress and straining-common culprits for hemorrhoids. “I just told myself, ‘You know what?
Calm down, take some deep breaths, stop straining, and this will all go away, and it’ll be fine, and you can go on and have a baby,'” Behnke recounted.
It would be over a year before Behnke discovered the true cause of her symptoms: stage 3b colorectal cancer, placing her among a growing number of younger adults diagnosed with the disease decades earlier than typically expected.
Cancer Wasn’t on Her Radar
At 41, Behnke successfully became pregnant with her fourth IVF round, a joyous and unexpected turn of events. Throughout her pregnancy, intermittent bleeding continued, easily dismissed as pregnancy-related hemorrhoids.
No one, she noted, probed deeper into the frequency or nature of the bleeding. “We all just said, ‘Oh, hemorrhoids, cool.
Moving on. We have other things to worry about,'” Behnke explained.
In her third trimester, a particularly bothersome external hemorrhoid emerged, causing significant discomfort. This bleeding, she observed, was different-bright red, like food dye. She managed the pain, delivered her daughter, and settled into the demanding routine of new motherhood.
Six months post-partum, Behnke began to feel more like herself. Yet, the bloody mucus persisted, even without a bowel movement, still attributed to that stubborn hemorrhoid. She also noticed a change in her bowel movements, with stools sometimes becoming pencil-thin.
Eventually, Behnke sought a colorectal surgeon to address the swollen hemorrhoid. During the consultation, the doctor meticulously inquired about all her symptoms, leaving no detail about the blood or stool unexamined.
To Behnke’s surprise, the surgeon then urged an urgent colonoscopy. “It could be a whole lot of things other than cancer, but we need a colonoscopy to find out for sure,” Behnke recalled her doctor saying.
This was the first time “cancer” entered the conversation after more than a year of symptoms.
Rectal Cancer on the Rise in Younger Adults
The diagnosis was devastating: late-stage 3b colorectal cancer. “But we have a seven-month-old!”
she cried, reeling from the news. “How could I be that sick and feel that good?”
she wondered, reflecting on her recent healthy pregnancy. Paradoxically, she felt a sense of gratitude for the “annoying little hemorrhoid” that ultimately led to her life-saving diagnosis.
The colonoscopy revealed the cancer had spread to lymph nodes around her rectum, nearing other organs. Fortunately, the prognosis remained relatively good, with doctors confident in their ability to eradicate the disease through radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery.
At 42, Behnke joined the demographic experiencing a concerning rise in colorectal cancer, now the deadliest cancer for people under 50 in America. Rebecca Siegel, an epidemiologist with the American Cancer Society, noted, “The landscape of colorectal cancer is changing rapidly.”
The reasons remain unclear, but many new, young-onset cases are rectal, presenting with symptoms like bloody stools. Other common indicators in this age group include persistent stomach cramping, severe abdominal pain, low iron levels, and changes in bowel movements, similar to Behnke’s experience with narrower stools.
Siegel highlighted that bloody stools serve as an early warning sign for approximately 40% of rectal cancer patients. “There’s an opportunity for earlier diagnosis, but the problem is, especially for younger people, they’re not aware of the symptoms and they don’t want to talk about the symptoms,” she explained. “And sometimes they even do go to the doctor with these symptoms, and they’re diagnosed with hemorrhoids or something else.”
Behnke underwent 25 sessions of radiation, followed by four months of chemotherapy, and finally, surgery to remove portions of her colon and rectum. For a few weeks, she found herself in diapers alongside her daughter.
Doctors confirmed that all visible traces of the cancer were gone. Her colon has since healed, and she’s adjusted to a new bathroom routine, though she acknowledges it will never be quite the same.
She now prioritizes a high-fiber diet and takes fiber supplements daily to manage lingering symptoms. “I am alive and I am healthy and all of this is workable,” she affirmed.
This Isn’t an “Old Man’s Disease” Anymore
Behnke stressed that colorectal cancer is no longer an “old man’s disease.” Following her diagnosis, she urged her younger brother to get a colonoscopy, which revealed precancerous polyps. Her own daughter, she said, will begin colonoscopies in her early 30s due to her increased risk.
Behnke expressed profound gratitude for encountering “the right surgeon at the right time,” a doctor who asked crucial questions and didn’t dismiss her symptoms due to her age or postpartum status. “No rectal bleeding is okay,” she emphasized. “If you do have any sort of symptoms, any sort of concerns, anything that doesn’t feel right, you have every right to go ask a doctor about it and to demand some answers.”