Raising Awareness For Colon Cancer

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) –  Participants gathered at Tupelo’s Fair Park to raise awareness for Colon Cancer.

In the 4th annual Run for Your Buns 5K event sponsored by North Mississippi Medical Center Cancer Care.

Each year 140,000 Americans are diagnosed with Colon Cancer and about 50,000 die making Colon Cancer the second leading cause of cancer death in America.

Saturday’s event, not only aimed at raising awareness, but also raised money for the patients support group which serve 22-county area.

Cindy McDaniel is a Cancer Care nurse who lost her mother to Colon Cancer. She says early detection is key.

“Colonoscopy is the gold standard. It’s actually a Colon prevention test where you have a procedure and our GI physicians can go in and remove polyps because that’s how Colon Cancer starts from a small polyp that can be removed,”said McDaniel.

McDaniel says it’s recommended that everyone age 50 have a colonoscopy.

If you’re at a higher risk you should consult your physician about when to have the procedure.