结肠癌幸存者说，是时候认真对待这种疾病了

结肠癌幸存者说，是时候认真对待这种疾病了

In a year that has already brought so much tragedy and loss, Chadwick Boseman's death at age 43 seems unthinkably cruel and unfair. How could such a vibrant performer have been suffering through late-stage colon cancer?

在已经带来如此多悲剧和损失的一年里，查德威克·博斯曼在43岁时去世，似乎是不可想象的残酷和不公平。这样一个充满活力的表演者，怎么会患上晚期结肠癌呢?

His four years of illness were the ones in which he rose to global superstardom with the role of T'Challa in the Marvel Studios 2018 film "Black Panther," along with a string of other dynamic performances. He seemed so gloriously alive, so energized to be in the world.

在患病的四年里，他凭借在漫威工作室2018年的电影《黑豹》中饰演特查拉，以及其他一系列充满活力的表演，一跃成为全球超级巨星。他似乎活得如此光彩耀人，充满活力地生活在这个世界上。

Why did he hide his illness from the public? Why did we not see it?

他为什么对公众隐瞒他的病情?为什么我们没有看到它?

I am a survivor of stage III colon cancer, and I'll tell you why I think most people don't talk about it. Almost nobody wants to think about colon cancer, and very few of us survivors feel comfortable speaking openly about it. And that needs to change.

我是第三期结肠癌的幸存者，我会告诉你为什么我认为大多数人不谈论它。几乎没有人愿意去想结肠癌，我们幸存者中很少有人愿意公开谈论它。这需要改变。

Colorectal cancer is the third most common type of cancer in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer deaths. I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't know that because this type of cancer has got a serious public relations problem.

结肠直肠癌是美国第三大最常见的癌症类型，也是癌症死亡的第二大原因。如果你不知道，我不会感到惊讶，因为这类癌症有一个严重的公共关系问题。

All cancers are hideous. But some types have been made, if we're being honest, a lot more palatable for public consumption. The fight against breast cancer, in particular, enjoys a robust publicity campaign. Many celebrities have been up-front about their battles with it.

所有的癌症都很可怕。但如果我们诚实地说，有些癌症类型对公众来说更容易接受。特别是在抗击乳腺癌方面，开展了一场声势浩大的宣传运动。许多名人都坦率地谈到了他们与它的斗争。

Colorectal cancer, in contrast, involves parts of the body we'd rather never talk about, let alone conceive of having surgery on. It's cancer of the colon or rectum. (The rectum is the passageway that connects the colon to the anus.)

相比之下，结肠直肠癌涉及的是我们永远不会谈及的身体部位，更别提要动手术了。这是结肠癌或直肠癌。(直肠是连接结肠和肛门的通道。)

And yet, we must. Colorectal cancer cases are on track to increase by 90% by 2030, according to leading cancer institute MD Anderson Cancer Center. We don't know why yet. And that it is increasingly being diagnosed in younger patients.

然而，我们必须这样做。据领先的癌症研究所MD安德森癌症中心称，到2030年，结肠直肠癌病例将增长90%。我们还不知道原因。而且越来越多的年轻患者被诊断出患有这种疾病。

The American Cancer Society just two years ago lowered its recommended age for colorectal cancer screening, from 50 to 45. That was the year I received my own colon cancer diagnosis at the age of, yep, 45.

就在两年前，美国癌症协会将结肠直肠癌筛查的推荐年龄从50岁降至45岁。那一年，我被诊断出患有结肠癌，当时我45岁。

Like many people under 50, I was hesitant to take my own symptoms seriously. I would timidly ask doctors what could be causing my abdominal pain and accept their answers that it was probably just run-of-the-mill irritable bowel syndrome. This isn't uncommon: Many doctors are still dismissive of colorectal cancer symptoms in younger patients, a study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology recently found.

像许多50岁以下的人一样，我不愿认真对待自己的症状。我会胆怯地问医生是什么导致了我的腹痛，并接受他们的回答，即那可能只是普通的肠道易激综合症。这并不罕见:《临床肿瘤学杂志》最近的一项研究发现，许多医生仍对年轻患者的结肠直肠癌症状不屑一顾。

Finally, a gastroenterologist insisted on a colonoscopy, more than two years after I started experiencing symptoms. That simple procedure found a sizable tumor. Immediate surgery was ordered, followed by months of chemotherapy. The cancer was categorized at a terrifying stage III, and I went into shock. No one I knew had dealt with colon cancer. No one in my family had it. It just didn't seem possible.

最后，在我开始出现症状两年多之后，一位胃肠病学家坚持要我做结肠镜检查。这个简单的手术发现了一个相当大的肿瘤。医生要求立即手术，随后进行了数月的化疗。(我的)癌症被分类到可怕的第三阶段，我陷入了休克。我认识的人中没有一个人曾经患过结肠癌。我们家没人得过。这似乎是不可能的。

Colorectal cancer doesn't care about embarrassment, though. It's on the rise in a scary way, and unless we start dismantling the taboo around it, it will claim many more victims. So I'm vowing to start talking about it more, no matter how cringey it is for me or other people.

不过，结肠直肠癌并不在乎尴尬。它正在以一种可怕的方式上升，除非我们开始消除它周围的禁忌，否则它将导致更多的受害者。所以我发誓要开始更多地谈论这件事，不管对我或其他人来说有多难堪。