Colon Cancer
Colon cancer (also called ‘colorectal’ cancer) can be successfully treated when it is diagnosed early. Our expert physicians diagnose and treat colorectal cancers with a goal of restoring you to a full, active life.
Colon Cancer Treatment at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital: Why Choose Us
We offer personalized care in a convenient location that also includes:
- Advanced technology: We provide the robotic and laparoscopic surgical capabilities that usually result in shorter hospital stays with less discomfort.
- Innovative treatment procedures: Many of our therapies are not usually found outside a large medical center, such as transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM), which enables your doctor to remove rectal lesions that are too large to take out using colonoscopy.
- Fast-track protocols: Designed to improve your comfort level and get you home as soon as possible after surgery, fast-tracking involves the use of high nutrition diets in combination with anesthetic and pain relief medications.
- High patient satisfaction ratings: We were ranked No. 1 in Missouri for patient engagement, according to Becker’s Hospital Review. Learn more about us and our achievements.
- Easy access: You can enter our campus in west St. Louis County from either Olive Boulevard or North Mason Road.
Learn more about the hope we provide to our patients by viewing our colon cancer videos and survival stories.
What is Colon Cancer?
Cancerous tumors can occur anywhere in the body. When they occur inside the large intestine (colon), they are called colon cancer. Many doctors also use the term ‘colorectal’ cancer to include cancers of the tissue near the rectum.
What are the Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer?
You can have colon cancer without experiencing any symptoms. This is why it is important for everyone over age 50 to have a screening colonoscopy performed by an expert gastroenterologist at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital.
When colorectal cancer does produce symptoms, you may experience:
- Black, tarry stool
- Rectal bleeding
- Changes in bowel habits
- Weight loss
- Abdominal pain or feeling bloated
- Feeling like you need to have a bowel movement even if you just had one
How is Colon Cancer Diagnosed?
The best way to diagnose colon cancer is by getting a colonoscopy. Our colonoscopy program offers:
- Same-day imaging facilities, so you don’t have to make a separate appointment and repeat your bowel prep procedure if your doctor needs to finish your exam with a CT colonography (also known as virtual colonoscopy, a noninvasive way to see inside the colon) or barium enema
- Monitored anesthesia, which puts you into a deeper, more comfortable sleep state than the traditional ‘twilight sleep’ of conscious sedation
- Easily accessible location that doesn’t require you to cope with traffic
Learn more about colonoscopy and what to expect at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital.
Other tests we use to diagnose colorectal cancers at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital are:
- Fecal occult stool test: Your stool is tested for blood, which can be a sign of colon cancer.
- DNA stool test: Your stool is tested for abnormal DNA that could signal a cancer tumor.
- Sigmoidoscopy: A procedure in which a thin, lighted scope is inserted into the lower portion of your colon (bowel) to look for abnormalities.
- Barium enema: This imaging study can identify tumors or non-cancerous polyps in your bowel.
- CT colonography: This specialized CT scan allows your doctor to image parts of your colon.
Contact Us
For more information or to schedule an appointment with a gastroenterologist, call Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital at 314.542.WEST (9378) or toll-free at 844.542.9378.
We are conveniently located just one mile west of I-270 on Olive Blvd., at Olive and Mason in Creve Coeur, Missouri - a west county suburb of St. Louis, Missouri. Get directions to our hospital.