Bowel Cancer and Acute Abdomen Flashcards
what are some causes of fresh blood in stools?
haemorrhoids acute anal fissures colorectal neoplasms acute proctitis IBD
what causes black stools or malaena?
bleeding from further up the GI tract, including small intestine or stomach
what are some risk factors for colorectal cancer?
family history
previous cancers
IBD
red meat and low fibres
where are the cancers most common?
2/3 in colon and rest in rectum
more left colon than right
recto-sigmoid colon most frequent site
what are the symptoms of bowel cancer?
change in bowel habit weight loss PR bleeding tenesmus IDA = TWO WEEK WAIT bowel obstruction
when would you give a two week wait for CRC
> 6week change in bowel habit AND pr bleeding any age
change in BH >6 weeks and age >60
RB without any other symptoms and >60
palpable mass right sided or rectal any age
IDA any age
what investigations can you do for CRC
colonoscopy - first line and biopsy
barium enema
CT colonography (in patients less fit for colonoscopy)
CT TAP for metastasis in patients with weight loss
what is screening like in the UK for CRC?
Faecal immunochemical test: every 2 years to people age 60-74
faecal occult blood test
THEN colonoscopy
also - flexible cystoscopy
what is a polyp?
growth of tissue from a mucous membrane off a surface
benign or malignant, can become malignant
hyperplastic = completely benign
what is the dukes classification?
A - only mucosa and part of bowel wall - 90% prognosis
B - extending through muscle of bowel wall - 70-80%
C - lymph node involvement 50%
D - metastatic 5-10%
what other staging is used in CRC?
TNM staging - refer to notes
what are the treatment options for CRC?
surgical resection
chemotherapy
radiotherapy
palliation
polypectomy for prevention
what is FAP and how is it treated?
familial adenoma polyptosis - polyps in whole colon which will develop into cancer
total colectomy with ileo-anal pouch
what is the genetics of FAP
mutation in Apc gene - TSG
95% penetrance, CRC in 20-30s
what is hNPCC?
hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer
autosomal dominant
inherited mismatch repair genes
- 70% penetrance, 30-50s age range, rapid progression and highly aggressive
- use amsterdam criteria to exclude FAP
what are the types of surgical resection for CRC?
right hemicolectomy - tumours in caecam, ascending and proximal colon
left hemi-colectomy - tumours of distal transverse and descending colon
sigmoid colectomy - tumours of sigmoid colon
anterior resection - tumours of low SC or higher rectum
abdominoperineal resection - tumours of lower rectum; remove rectum and anus and suturing over, leaving them with permanent colostomy
what does a surgical resection involve?
removing a tumour and creating an end to end anastomosis
what is a covering loop ileostomy
temporary ileostomy to protect distal anastomosis
let it heal for 6-8 weeks tgeb reverse
loop: 2 ends of a section of small bowel being brought out onto skin (look for diagram)
lower right side of abdomen
what are complications of surgical resections for CRC?
bleeding infection pain damage to nerves, ureter, bladder etc anaesthetic risks anastomosis leak stoma? failure
what are the follow ups for curative resections?
CT TAP at 1 and 2 and 3 years
Colonoscopy at 1 and 5 years
CEA every 6 months for 3 years
what is CEA?
carcinoembryonic antigen
tumour marker blood test for bowel cancer
useful to predict relapse of prev treated CRC
what is diverticular disease
outpouching of the colonic mucosa and submucosa through WEAKNESS in the outer muscle layers
- commonest site is sigmoid colon due to pressure effects: chronic constipation and accumulation of faecal matter
what is diverticulosis?
presence of diverticula without symptoms
common as people age
no treatment
what is diverticulitis and what are the symptoms?
inflammation of the pouches/diverticula
- left iliac fossa pain and tenderness
- fever
- diarrhoe
- may have RB and mucus in stools
- nausea and vomiting
how do you manage diverticulitis?
admission if unwell or haemodynamically unstable antibiotics analgesia fluid resuscitation surgical resection ?
what are the complications of diverticular disease?
bleeding
infection —> diverticulitis
perforation; faeces leaking leading to peritonitis
abscess formation
FISTULA from colon to bladder: increase susceptibility to UTIs
obstruction