Vol 2. No. 4: All about the signs and symptoms of CRC
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Dear Thriver,
What are the signs and symptoms of CRC? This is a question I’m often asked—and one I care deeply about. That is why, in this issue of the CRC Research Digest, I wanted to focus on the signs and symptoms of CRC. I wanted to bring together different ways of understanding these—from personal experience to research to practical tools.
Understanding the signs and symptoms of CRC matters—not just for ourselves, but for the people around us. Family history is a known risk factor, but awareness of symptoms can also play an important role. Having this information may help someone you care about recognize changes earlier and feel more confident seeking care.
If you think this Digest issue could help someone you love, I hope you’ll consider sharing it. Sometimes, passing along information is one small step that can make a meaningful difference.
With gratitude,
🎞️ What shows up before a CRC diagnosis? A two‑part video series
Signs and symptoms of CRC is truly such an important topic that our team created not one, but two videos to explore it fully—bringing together my personal experience with our research.
In Part 1, I share the symptoms I experienced before my CRC diagnosis, and I don’t stop at what happened—I also explore why, by explaining the science behind these.
In Part 2, I take you inside a study I conducted, examining healthcare visits and symptom patterns in the years leading up to CRC diagnosis in British Columbia to understand where opportunities for earlier action may exist.
🍽️ The Digest: What happens in the five years before a CRC diagnosis? Patterns in healthcare visits and symptoms
Year published: August 2022
How we did this research:
We analyzed doctor visits, emergency room visits, and hospital stays using health records in British Columbia for people diagnosed with CRC and looked at what was happening in the 5 years before their diagnosis.
We grouped visits as:
Visits for potentially CRC-related symptoms: common, often vague symptoms such as stomach pain, nausea, or vomiting
Visits for red‑flag symptoms: more concerning, such as rectal bleeding, low iron (anemia)
What we found:
Visits for CRC symptoms appeared primarily in the final year before diagnosis, peaking in the last two months.
29.5% of visits were for potentially CRC‑related symptoms and 9.8% were for red‑flag symptoms.
One symptom differed by age at diagnosis—rectal bleeding:1.8% of visits among early‑onset CRC patients (diagnosed under age 50) included rectal bleeding, while no such visits were observed among average‑onset CRC patients (diagnosed at age 50 or older).
Want to see the most common symptoms before diagnosis and how they differed by age? Explore the study infographic here.
🎁 CCOR Guide to Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer
Okay—did I mention how important this topic is to me? That’s why I created the CCOR Guide to Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer. Built from evidence gathered in our research, this guide turns data into a clear, practical, and non‑scary tool to help people notice changes in their digestive health, understand which symptoms may need attention, and feel more confident talking with their healthcare team.
If you think this guide could help someone you care about, please consider sharing it.
🏃➡️ Join us at the BumRun!
I’m proud to share that I will be serving as a Champion for the 2026 Vancouver BumRun. As I celebrate the 10th anniversary of my CRC diagnosis, I’ve set a personal fundraising goal of $10,000 to support the vital work of the Colorectal Cancer Resource & Action Network (CCRAN). CCRAN continues to make a meaningful difference for CRC patients in Canada and around the world.
I invite you to join and/or support my team as we work together to reach this goal and advance support for our CRC community.
What thrivers ❤️ about the Digest
"THANK YOU so much for this letter! It came to me at the perfect moment and I read every word and followed every link. But I also really appreciated the summaries both in words and pictures..."
"...Thanks for this information as I have followed you for the past six years and still hope to."
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That's it for today!
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Talk soon,
Mary, Alexander, and Joy — The Colorectal Cancer Research Digest editorial team
