UPR Cancer Center urges early colorectal cancer detection as cases rise among younger adults.

Dr. Elba Caraballo Rivera, deputy director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Puerto Rico (cccupr.org)

By THE STAR STAFF

The University of Puerto Rico (UPR) Comprehensive Cancer Center has renewed its call for early colorectal cancer screening amid data showing an alarming rise in diagnoses among younger adults on the island.

According to the latest report from the Puerto Rico Central Cancer Registry, colorectal cancer accounted for 11.1% of all cancer cases in men and 10.4% in women between 2018 and 2022. The disease was also responsible for 12.7% of cancer-related deaths in men and 12.2% in women during that period.

“We are facing a significant public health challenge,” said Dr. Elba Caraballo Rivera, deputy director of the cancer center, in a written statement. “The good news is that colorectal cancer can be detected early and even prevented through appropriate testing.”

Caraballo Rivera noted that research conducted at the center indicates a growing number of diagnoses among people aged 50 or younger, prompting studies into possible biological, environmental and lifestyle factors driving the trend.

Health experts recommend that individuals at average risk begin screening at age 45. Those with a family history of the disease or additional risk factors should undergo evaluation earlier, following medical guidance. Available screening methods include fecal occult blood testing, fecal immunochemical testing, stool DNA tests, colonoscopy and flexible sigmoidoscopy.

Puerto Rico Health Secretary Víctor Ramos Otero emphasized that the island’s Preventive Cancer Protocol ensures access to diagnostic studies and treatments when there is clinical suspicion of cancer.