What Are the Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer in Women?

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. It’s the third most common cancer in both men and women. In early stages, colorectal cancer doesn’t cause any symptoms. Because it grows slowly, it can take a long time before it does cause symptoms. This is why screening is so important. 

But it’s also important to know about colorectal cancer signs and symptoms, so you know what to watch for. Here we’ll discuss common symptoms of colorectal cancer in women. 

What are the most common symptoms of colorectal cancer in women?

The first thing to know is that symptoms don’t really differ between men and women. When colorectal cancer symptoms do develop, they depend on the location of the cancer and any spread (metastasis). 

These symptoms can include:  

• Blood in your stool: The bleeding may be bright or dark red and mixed with the stool. Other conditions can cause this, too. It’s unlikely that this symptom by itself is due to colorectal cancer.  

• Changes in bowel habits: You may notice that you have bowel movements more or less often. You may have loose stool, diarrhea, or constipation. Stools might also be thinner than normal.

• Unintentional weight loss: Weight loss may be a symptom of cancer, especially without any changes to diet or exercise routine.

• Abdominal pain: Colorectal cancer can cause abdominal pain, but so can many other conditions.

• Fatigue: This means you may feel extra tired and lack energy.

Other conditions that affect your colon or rectum — such as irritable bowel syndrome, hemorrhoids, inflammatory bowel disease, gastritis, or a stomach ulcer — may also explain your symptoms. That’s why symptoms alone aren’t very useful at diagnosing colorectal cancer. In one systematic review, only bleeding and weight loss were indicative of colorectal cancer. It’s important to tell your doctor about any of these symptoms so that they can determine whether you should do diagnostic testing.

What affects the symptoms of colorectal cancer women may experience?

Different studies suggest that more women develop right-sided colon cancer, as compared with men. The space inside the right side of the colon is wide. So cancer-related blockage usually doesn’t happen until the cancer is more advanced. And if there’s bleeding due to right-sided cancer, stools may look maroon or black in color. It may also go unnoticed. 

The left side of the colon is narrower, and the stool that passes through it is more solid. Left-sided cancers cause bowel movement changes earlier. They also cause bleeding and abdominal pain earlier.    

What are the most serious symptoms of colorectal cancer in women?

Colorectal cancer symptoms also depend on the cancer stage at diagnosis. Stage 1 to 3 cancers are localized to the bowel wall and surrounding lymph nodes. Colorectal cancer can also spread to other organs in the body, where it can cause different symptoms. Stage 4, or metastatic cancer, refers to cancer that has spread to distant sites. 

Colon cancer most commonly spreads to the liver. But it can also travel to the lungs, abdominal cavity (the peritoneum), bones, and distant lymph nodes. Symptoms of metastatic colon cancer depend on the organ affected: 

• Liver: jaundice, swelling of the legs, abdominal pain, itching, fatigue

• Lungs: shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, coughing up blood

• Peritoneum: abdominal pain 

• Bones: pain, fractures 

How do you detect colon cancer?

Different options are available for the detection of colon cancer, and your provider can help determine which is best for you.

Colonoscopy is considered the first-choice test to diagnose colon cancer. This procedure allows for the early detection of colorectal cancer and enables the removal of precancerous polyps. Polyps take up to 10 to 15 years to turn into cancer. By finding and removing polyps during screening colonoscopies, colorectal cancers can actually be prevented.  

Other screening tests include: 

• Flexible sigmoidoscopy: This is similar to a colonoscopy but is limited to only a portion of the colon.

• Virtual colonoscopy (CT colonography): This is an imaging exam of the colon that uses radiation. It’s a less invasive way to examine the colon than a colonoscopy. 

• Stool DNA tests: This test looks for cancerous or precancerous DNA in the stool. 

• Fecal occult blood testing: This test looks for blood in a stool sample.

The American Cancer Society recommends starting screening for colorectal cancer with colonoscopy at 45 years of age in the general population. If tests don’t find polyps, this needs to be repeated every 10 years. If you have a higher risk of colorectal cancer — due to family history, for example — you should start screening at an earlier age.

When should you see a doctor about symptoms of colorectal cancer?

Please consult your provider if you have any symptoms that are suspicious for colorectal cancer. Other conditions can cause symptoms that overlap with those that colorectal cancer causes. But you should get an evaluation if you have symptoms that don’t have another obvious cause and don’t go away. It might make you uncomfortable to talk about things like bowel habits, but it could be dangerous to ignore these symptoms. 

How treatable is colorectal cancer in women?

The outlook for people diagnosed with colorectal cancer has improved over the past decades in the U.S. The cancer stage at diagnosis is the single most important factor in determining the prognosis. When it’s caught early, treatment is more successful.  

Surgery is the main treatment for colon cancer stages 1 to 3. Surgery alone is able to cure most cases of stage 1 and 2 colon cancer. The higher the stage of the cancer, the less likely that surgery alone will be curative. So in these scenarios, additional treatment — such as with chemotherapy — is important. 

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Written by:

Merin Kuruvilla, MD

Merin Kuruvilla, MD, is a board-certified allergist/immunologist at Emory University in Atlanta. She has authored several peer-reviewed publications in the field.

Edited by:

Mandy Armitage, MD

Mandy Armitage, MD, has combined her interests in clinical medicine with her passion for education and content development for many years. She served as medical director for the health technology companies HealthLoop (now Get Well) and Doximity.

Reviewed by:

Sarah Koller, MD, MS, FACS

Sarah Koller, MD, MS, is board-certified in general surgery and colorectal surgery. She is currently on faculty at the University of Southern California as an assistant professor of surgery.

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