Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have reported an increase in early-onset colorectal cancer and precancerous polyps, based on a large, nationally representative study of patients under age 50 who underwent colonoscopy. It is the first large-scale study to look at precancerous polyps in this age group. The findings were featured in the paper, Prevalence and Predictors of Young-Onset Colorectal Neoplasia: Insights from a Nationally Representative Colonoscopy Registry, published in Gastroenterology.

A team of Vanderbilt researchers has revealed some of the mechanisms by which polyps develop into colorectal cancer, setting the framework for improved surveillance for the cancer utilising precision medicine. The findings were published in the paper, 'Differential pre-malignant programs and microenvironment chart distinct paths to malignancy in human colorectal polyps', published in Cell

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have revealed that new treatment options for Crohn's disease patients may be on the horizon thanks to the research linking a common fungal pathogen to inflammatory bowel disease. Their findings were featured in the study, ‘Candida tropicalis Infection Modulates the Gut Microbiome and Confers Enhanced Susceptibility to Colitis in Mice’, published Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

Strains of bacteria that cause common food-poisoning symptoms often contain a toxin that can damage DNA in intestinal cells, potentially triggering colorectal cancer, according to a study from researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.