Tracy Robert had always thought her bloating and stomach discomfort were linked to irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a diagnosis she received two decades ago. During her first pregnancy, she faced rectal bleeding, and doctors attributed that to both her IBS and a history of internal hemorrhoids.
After receiving advice from ER staff and her primary care physician to increase her fiber intake, she went home, but by the time she reached 40, her symptoms escalated—constant bloating, constipation, and more frequent rectal bleeding. Something felt off, and she began to worry it could be something more serious.
Despite being in good health, maintaining a vegan diet, and having no family history of cancer, she found it frustrating to get a definitive answer. Numerous specialists, including allergists and gastroenterologists, examined her but found nothing out of the ordinary.
In early 2015, she decided to schedule a colonoscopy after her doctor suggested it. During the procedure, what she thought was a hemorrhoid turned out to resemble polyps—growths that can become cancerous. This led to a referral to a colorectal surgeon for an MRI.
She was with her chiropractor, who had been helping her with her abdominal pain, when she received the call—what the GI doctor initially believed to be a harmless polyp was actually a malignant tumor.
In the U.S., roughly 10 percent of colon cancer cases occur in individuals under 50, and these numbers have been on the rise. Robert learned she had stage 2B to 3A colorectal cancer, suggesting the cancer had spread beyond the colon’s outer layer into the rectal wall.
Doctors intended to surgically remove the mass, but she first needed to take oral chemotherapy daily and undergo radiation treatments for three weeks. The tumor was deeply embedded in her rectum, wrapped around the sphincter muscles controlling bowel movements, which forced surgeons to divert her colon. Now, she empties waste into a colostomy bag, which was incredibly challenging to adapt to.
“I felt like I lost my sexiness, like I lost my innocence,” she reflected. This plunge into darkness was tough, especially for her sons, who were just seven and nine at the time and often sought comfort from her at night.
After surgery, she received a stage 0 colorectal cancer diagnosis, indicating the cancer had not spread past the colon lining. Despite intensive chemotherapy that left her with dangerously low white blood cell counts, follow-up scans ultimately revealed no signs of disease, and she remarkably found herself cancer-free.
However, Robert often wonders whether her situation might have been different if a gastroenterologist had scheduled her for a colonoscopy sooner, despite her being younger than the recommended age of 45 for the procedure.
“If I could go back, I would have insisted on one,” she mentioned. “Doctors could have caught and removed the polyp early, preventing it from turning into cancer and saving me from a lifetime with a colostomy bag.”
Now, she’s taken to TikTok to raise awareness about colorectal cancer, particularly in young people as young as 17. Scientists are increasingly alarmed by the trend, citing various factors such as poor diet, obesity, sedentary lifestyles, and environmental toxins.
“Even if you believe you’re living healthily, if something feels wrong or you’re not getting clear answers, keep pushing for answers,” she stated. “Just because a doctor thinks it’s something, like a hemorrhoid, doesn’t mean it is. They’re human too, and tests don’t always tell the whole story. Research, ask questions, and consult different doctors—you’re your own best advocate.”
