Individuals who consume the highest amounts of digestible carbohydrate the non-fiber "effective" component of carbohydrate have a significantly increased risk for developing colorectal cancer compared with those who eat the lowest amounts.
Among those with the lowest amount of non-fiber carbohydrate consumption:
Women had a 7-fold increased risk, with the highest risk in the right colon
The following are some facts about colorectal cancer:
Second only to lung cancer, accounting for 15% of all cancer deaths
Other risk factors are colorectal polyps, cancer elsewhere in the body, a family history of colon cancer, colitis, and immunodeficiency disorders
Many medical texts list the consumption of a diet high in fat and meat consumption as increasing risk. This seems to be possibly in conflict with this newest study.
Symptoms include diarrhea, blood in the stool, unexplained anemia, abdominal pain and tenderness in the lower abdomen, intestinal obstruction, and weight loss.
Colorectal cancer in usually diagnosed with a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy performed with a biopsy. If a tumor is large enough it may be revealed by a standard rectal examination as well.
Meeting of the Society for Epidemiologic Research - Seattle, Washington, July 2000
Also, fiber is may not be the protector against colon cancer that many think it is (see the first 2 articles below).