The recommended age to start screening for colorectal cancer was lowered in 2021 from 50 to 45 for people of average risk.

Having one or more of these symptoms — diarrhea, stomach pain, bloody stools, and anemia — is associated with higher risks of developing colorectal cancer before age 50.

In total, global cases of colon cancer in under-35s surged from 21,874 in 1990 to 41,545 in 2019, doubling over 30 years.