Health
Doctors told woman she was too young for a colonoscopy. Then she was diagnosed with Stage 3 colon cancer
When Brooks Bell was 38, doctors told her she was too young to have colon cancer, dismissing her textbook symptoms as “likely hemorrhoids.”
A few months later, after pushing for tests, the North Carolina-based entrepreneur was diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer.
Bell, now 43, is encouraging other younger adults to listen to their bodies and advocate for their health, particularly as colon cancer cases are rising among people under 50.
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The founder of a digital analytics company, Bell was traveling for a technology conference five years ago when she found blood in her stool.
“I called a doctor from my hotel room and explained what was going on, and she said that blood in the stool is very common,” Bell told Fox News Digital. “She said it was almost definitely a hemorrhoid and that I should just watch it, and that it would likely go away in a couple of days.”
Brooks Bell of North Carolina is pictured after chemotherapy at right. After her treatment and recovery, she was voted onto the Board of Directors of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance. (Brooks Bell)
It didn’t go away, and a few weeks later, Bell made an appointment with a different doctor.
“She checked me out and didn’t find a hemorrhoid, but said that was probably still what it was because of my young age,” she said.
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Bell was hoping the doctor would refer her to a gastroenterologist for a colonoscopy, but she didn’t.
“At that point, I didn’t really trust where this was going, because it was still bleeding after two months,” she said. “And so I called a gastroenterologist myself.”
Four days later, during the colonoscopy, the doctors found a tumor in Bell’s colon that was causing the bleeding.
“They told me they’d be in touch, but that it was almost certainly cancerous.”
Bell is pictured during a chemotherapy treatment. She received three months of intense chemo following her surgery. (Brooks Bell)
Bell’s cancer was Stage III, which she said was actually good news.
“It was still a small tumor and I had about an 87% chance of survival,” she said.
Bell immediately had surgery to remove 10 inches of her colon. Following that was three months of high-dose chemotherapy that was 50% more intense than most regimens.
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After treatment, there was the waiting game to make sure the disease didn’t recur.
“The first year was terrifying — I had lots of nightmares,” Bell shared. “Colon cancer has the highest rate of coming back in the first year, and then it drops off after that.”
Today, five years later, Bell is cancer-free.
Understanding risk factors
Dr. Austin Chiang, gastroenterologist and chief medical officer of Endoscopy at Medtronic, a medical equipment manufacturer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, said it’s hard to pinpoint the exact cause of rising colon cancer rates in young people, but he has noticed a few contributing factors.
“Related to diet, there’s been an increase in consumption of red meat and ultra-processed foods,” he told Fox News Digital.
Brooks Bell speaks with guests at the first-ever Colonoscopy Gala at the Contemporary Art Museum in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, on Feb. 28, 2020. (Eamon Queeney for the Colonoscopy Gala)
“We’ve also seen an association with rising rates of obesity. The trouble is, even if this trend is related to either of those things, what we don’t yet understand is the mechanism behind it.”
To reduce risk, Chiang said his team often recommends limiting the consumption of red meat and alcohol, as well as not smoking, which is known as a big risk factor for cancer.
“Remaining physically active is also a good rule of thumb, but beyond that, there are no other known means to reliably reduce cancer risk,” he added.
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After hearing that exercise reduces the risk of cancer coming back, Bell committed to working out every day.
“I decided I was going to exercise harder than I ever exercised in my life,” she said. “The day I finished my treatment, I was out with my running shoes.”
She even decided to train for a triathlon — finishing the event exactly one year after finishing her cancer treatment.
Brooks Bell is pictured after completing her first triathlon, one year after her final chemotherapy treatment. (Brooks Bell)
Nutrition has also been a bigger focus for Bell since her cancer treatment — particularly since colon cancer is so closely linked to gut health.
“I eat as many vegetables as I can, and I really focus on my fiber intake,” she said. “A plant-based diet helps with your microbiome health, so that’s my main focus.”
In 2024, an estimated 106,590 new cases of colon cancer and 46,220 new cases of rectal cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S.
Bell occasionally eats dairy and some lean meats, but avoids red meat.
She also sees a functional doctor — a physician that focuses on identifying and eliminating the issues that cause disease as opposed to treating and reacting to symptoms — who helps ensure that she gets the right amount of supplements and antioxidants.
Colon cancer screening guidelines
Since 2021, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has recommended that adults ages 45 to 75 get screened for colorectal cancer.
Prior to 2021, the guidance was to get screened starting at 50.
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“That change was a huge win,” said Bell. “I think we should be grateful for that — they don’t move guidelines very often. There was overwhelming evidence to get it to 45.”
There are some indications that screening should start at 40, Bell said — “so that would be the next goal.”
Dr. Austin Chiang, gastroenterologist and chief medical officer of Endoscopy at Medtronic, a medical equipment manufacturer in Philadelphia, said it’s hard to pinpoint the exact cause of rising colon cancer rates in young people. (Dr. Austin Chiang)
“The reason it’s not at 40 is the cost and limited availability of colonoscopies — it would put more strain on the system,” she said.
Beyond the rectal bleeding that Bell experienced, other colon cancer symptoms include changes in bowel habits, abdominal discomfort, weakness or fatigue, a feeling of the bowel not completely emptying, and unexplained weight loss, according to Mayo Clinic.
Barriers to care
One of the main barriers in terms of young people getting early screening and care is lack of awareness of the risk, Bell said.
“It wasn’t that my doctors were bad — it’s just that they didn’t know this was a risk,” she told Fox News Digital. “They just don’t think they’re staring down a cancer diagnosis when someone is so young.”
There is a tendency to associate colorectal cancer with older age.
“For primary care doctors, I think they’re supposed to kind of rule out everything else before sending you in for a big-ticket item like a colonoscopy.”
Chiang agreed that there is a tendency to associate colorectal cancer with older age.
“Because current screening guidelines recommend colonoscopies starting at age 45 for people of average risk, we’re less accustomed to seeing younger patients showing symptoms of colon cancer,” he told Fox News Digital.
Brooks Bell (far right, back) moderates a discussion at the White House as part of its Cancer Moonshot initiative. (Brooks Bell)
“What makes it even more difficult is that patients with early-onset cases often experience different symptoms, so there’s still learning to be done as we become more aware and cognizant of the risk.”
Many people don’t know they need to be screened starting at age 45, Chiang pointed out — “which is why it’s important to have a primary care doctor who can help keep track of that for you.”
There’s also a common misconception that colonoscopies are dangerous or uncomfortable, he added, which may create some fear.
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“Finally, there are social determinants that create barriers as well, like physical proximity to health care centers or inability to take a day off from work to be screened,” the doctor said.
There’s a common misconception that non-invasive, stool-based tests are equivalent to getting a colonoscopy, Chiang warned, but there are some limitations associated with that method.
“If you have a positive stool test, you aren’t able to locate where that result is coming from, and more importantly, you’re not able to remove it on the spot,” he said. “With a colonoscopy, doctors can do both of those things.”
Other than skin cancers, colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in the country. (iStock)
Colonoscopies also allow doctors to detect lesions early before they turn into cancer — “especially with the help of AI technology, like our GI Genius tool,” Chiang noted.
“Our hope is that tech like this will help to standardize patient care, so that everyone who comes in for a colonoscopy has the best detection rate possible.”
Committed to the cause
After her diagnosis, Bell immersed herself in studying as much as she could about the disease.
“It was alarming to learn how preventable it is, and how underfunded it is, and how it’s rising in young people, and the importance of colonoscopies,” she said.
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Intent on raising awareness, Bell joined the Board of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, a nonprofit focused on colon cancer prevention.
In 2022, Bell founded the nonprofit Lead From Behind as a subsidiary of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance.
“The goal was to create a fresh brand focused on staying healthy and positioning colon cancer as the preventable cancer — and to help destigmatize colonoscopies.”
Brooks Bell is pictured after undergoing surgery to remove a section of her colon after her cancer diagnosis. (Brooks Bell)
Lead From Behind has drawn a handful of prominent voices to the cause, including pro football player Dak Prescott and actor Ryan Reynolds.
Bell has also spoken at the White House as part of its Cancer Moonshot initiative, which aims to reduce cancer deaths by 50% over the next five years.
She is also hard at work on a new initiative focused on raising funds for colonoscopies for underinsured individuals.
“I want to try to continue to shift our culture to make colonoscopies and colon cancer prevention part of our conversations about wellness — so it’s just something that healthy, smart people do automatically as as they get into their 40s,” she said.
In 2024, an estimated 106,590 new cases of colon cancer and 46,220 new cases of rectal cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society (ACS).
Other than skin cancers, colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in the country.
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For women over 60, muscle strength plays a critical role in longevity, a new study confirms.
Researchers at the University at Buffalo, New York, followed more than 5,000 women between the ages of 63 and 99, finding that those with greater muscle strength had a significantly lower risk of death over an eight-year period.
The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.
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Muscle function was measured using grip strength and how quickly participants could complete five unassisted sit-to-stand chair raises.
These are two tests commonly used in clinical settings to evaluate muscle function in older adults, the researchers noted.
A recent study shows that stronger muscle strength in women over 60 is linked to a lower risk of death over eight years. (iStock)
“In a community cohort of ambulatory older women, muscular strength was associated with significantly lower mortality rates, even when we accounted for usual physical activity and sedentary time measured using a wearable monitor, gait speed and blood C-reactive protein levels,” study lead author Michael LaMonte, research professor of epidemiology and environmental health at the University at Buffalo, told Fox News Digital.
“Movement is the key — just move more and sit less.”
Many earlier studies did not include those objective measurements, making it difficult to determine whether muscle strength itself was linked to longevity, according to LaMonte. “Our study was able to better isolate the association between strength and death in later life,” he added.
Even for women who don’t get the recommended amount of aerobic physical activity, which is at least 150 minutes per week, muscle strength remained important for longevity, the researchers found.
Women with greater muscle strength were more likely to live longer, even if they did not meet the recommended amount of aerobic exercise. (iStock)
“The findings of lower mortality in those who had higher strength but were not meeting current national guidelines on aerobic activity were somewhat intriguing,” LaMonte said.
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Federal guidelines recommend strengthening activities one to two days per week, targeting major muscle groups.
Resistance training does not have to require a gym membership, LaMonte noted. These exercises can be performed using free weights, resistance bands, bodyweight movements or even household items, such as soup cans.
Experts recommend working major muscle groups one or two days a week using weights, bands or bodyweight exercises. (iStock)
“Movement is the key — just move more and sit less,” he said. “When we can no longer get out of the chair and move around, we are in trouble.”
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LaMonte acknowledged several limitations of the study. The researchers assessed muscle strength in older age but did not explore how earlier levels in adulthood might influence long-term health outcomes.
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“We were not able to understand how strength and mortality relate in younger ages,” he said, noting that future research should explore whether building strength earlier could have an even greater impact on longevity.
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Compounds found in cannabis could provide a new roadmap for treating the world’s most common chronic liver disorder, according to a study released by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The research, published in the British Journal of Pharmacology, found that cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG) significantly reduced liver fat and improved metabolic health in experimental models.
CBD is the more widely studied non-intoxicating cannabinoid, while CBG is a less common “precursor” cannabinoid from which CBD is formed.
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Unlike THC, the primary psychoactive component in cannabis, these compounds do not produce a “high,” making them viable candidates for long-term medical treatment, the study suggests.
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) currently affects approximately one-third of the global adult population, according to health data.
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) currently affects approximately one-third of the global adult population. (iStock)
The condition, which is closely linked to obesity and insulin resistance, has few approved pharmaceutical treatments, the researchers said, leaving patients to rely largely on lifestyle changes that can be difficult to maintain.
“Our findings identify a new mechanism by which CBD and CBG enhance hepatic energy and lysosomal function,” said lead study author Joseph Tam, director of the Multidisciplinary Center for Cannabinoid Research at Hebrew University, in a press release.
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The study highlights a process called “metabolic remodeling,” in which the cannabis compounds created a “backup battery” for the liver by increasing levels of phosphocreatine, a high-energy molecule stored in muscle cells.
This energy reserve helps the organ function under the stress of a high-fat diet, which was an unexpected discovery, the team noted.
Researchers focused on CBD and CBG, two non-psychoactive compounds that offer therapeutic benefits without the “high” associated with THC. (iStock)
The researchers also found that CBD and CBG restored the activity of “cellular cleaning crews” known as cathepsins, enzymes that work within the cell’s recycling centers to break down harmful fats and waste.
With this process, the liver was better able to clear out dangerous lipids, including triglycerides and ceramides, which are known to trigger inflammation, the study showed.
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While both compounds were effective, CBG showed more robust results in certain areas, such as reducing total body fat mass, lowering “bad” LDL cholesterol and improving insulin sensitivity.
Researchers say this study opens a new path for using plant-based compounds to treat metabolic diseases by focusing on how cells manage energy and waste.
The discovery of a phosphocreatine “backup battery” in the liver marks a significant shift in how scientists understand the organ’s ability to survive high-fat diets. (iStock)
Limitations and caveats
Despite the promising results, the research team cautioned that the study was conducted in a controlled experimental environment. Further clinical trials are necessary to determine the proper application for human patients.
Other recent studies have pointed to potential issues with using cannabis as a medical tool.
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A major analysis published in JAMA examined more than 2,500 scientific papers from the last 15 years, including other reviews, clinical trials and guidelines focused on medical marijuana.
The 2025 review highlighted significant gaps between public perception and scientific evidence regarding cannabis’ effectiveness for most medical conditions.
Other recent studies have pointed to issues with the efficacy of cannabis as a medical tool. (iStock)
The researchers concluded that there are very few conditions for which cannabinoid therapies have clear, well-established benefits backed by high-quality clinical data.
“Whenever a substance is widely used, there is likely to be a very wide set of outcomes,” Alex Dimitriu, MD, who is double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, previously told Fox News Digital. “This study points to the reality that this widely used substance is not a panacea.”
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The strongest evidence supports FDA-approved cannabinoid medications for treating specific conditions, including HIV/AIDS-related appetite loss, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, and certain severe pediatric seizure disorders, according to the review.
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Anyone interested in using marijuana for medical purposes should speak to a healthcare provider to discuss potential risks and benefits.
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While cannabis has recently come under fire for potential negative health risks, a recent study suggests that its use could increase brain volume and cognitive fitness.
Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus analyzed cannabis usage, brain scans and cognitive test results for more than 26,000 adults between the ages of 40 and 77, using data from the UK biobank.
The study found that cannabis users — particularly those who reported moderate lifetime usage — showed larger volumes in several brain regions.
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“Compared to individuals with no history of cannabis use, those who reported using cannabis showed larger volumes in several brain regions characterized by a high density of cannabinoid (CB1) receptors — regions involved in processes such as memory, information processing and emotion regulation,” lead study author Anika Guha, Ph.D., a researcher at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, told Fox News Digital.
A recent study suggests that cannabis use could increase brain volume and cognitive fitness. (iStock)
The cannabis users also scored better on cognitive tests that measured learning, processing speed and executive function.
This outcome differs from many previous studies, which have focused on short-term cognitive impairment during or shortly after cannabis use, the researcher pointed out.
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“These findings suggest that the relationship between cannabis and the brain may differ across the lifespan, and that moderate use in mid-to-later adulthood may be associated with positive brain health outcomes,” Guha said.
Not all areas of the brain showed positive effects among cannabis users. The posterior cingulate, which is involved in self-reflection and memory, had lower volume with higher marijuana use.
“The takeaway is not that people should start using more cannabis based on these findings alone.”
As cannabis has been rising in popularity among all ages, this type of study is important for understanding its long-term effects and the pros and cons of use, according to Matt Glowiak, Ph.D., chief addiction specialist with Recovered, an organization that provides information and resources for mental health and addiction treatment.
The drug’s effects likely depend on factors such as age, dose, frequency, product composition and individual vulnerability. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)
“Given the connection between cannabis use and larger brain volume, it is believed that it may help [older] individuals retain cognitive function that might otherwise naturally decline,” Chicago-based Glowiak, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
“This is a huge benefit, but one we need to explore a bit further, ahead of encouraging those who would otherwise not consider integrating cannabis into their healthcare regimen.”
Limitations and caveats
As the study was observational in nature, it could not prove that cannabis use improves brain health — instead, it only showed an association, according to Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, who was not involved in the study.
“The preponderance of previous evidence does not line up with improved cognitive function from chronic cannabis use,” Siegel told Fox News Digital. “This study is an outlier, and though it cannot be ignored, it is not justification for use.”
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The study also relied on the UK Biobank, which offers a “large and rich dataset,” Guha said — but it is limited to the questions that were originally posed to the participants.
“In particular, we have only a broad measure of how many times someone has used cannabis over their lifetime,” she said. “We do not have access to details about how they used cannabis, such as whether they smoked or used edibles, the type or potency of cannabis, or when in their life they used most heavily.”
Cannabis users scored better in learning, processing speed and executive function. (iStock)
“Those details likely matter a great deal for understanding how cannabis affects the aging brain.”
Given these limitations, Guha suggests that the findings should be seen as an early indicator that cannabis use may be related to brain aging, “and as a starting point for more targeted research that can tease apart these relationships.”
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“The takeaway is not that people should start using more cannabis based on these findings alone,” she emphasized. “While cannabis may have potential benefits in some contexts, a substantial body of research also documents important risks, underscoring that cannabis is neither completely beneficial nor completely harmful.”
The drug’s effects likely depend on factors such as age, dose, frequency, product composition and individual vulnerability, according to Guha.
“Given the widespread use and legalization of cannabis, it would be great to know that it is net-positive for brain health — however, this feels too good to be true, and too early to claim,” one expert said. (AP)
“As with any substance, individuals should consult with a healthcare provider before initiating use, particularly if they have a history of mental health concerns, as THC (the primary psychoactive component of cannabis) can exacerbate symptoms such as psychosis in vulnerable individuals,” she added.
Dr. Alex Dimitriu, who is double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, reiterated that this study is an “outlier,” as most previous research has shown “detrimental effects” from cannabis use.
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“Given the widespread use and legalization of cannabis, it would be great to know that it is net-positive for brain health — however, this feels too good to be true, and too early to claim,” he said. “I would advise proceeding with caution and moderation.”
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Dimitriu agreed that more large-scale studies and review papers are needed to get a “clearer picture.”
“What this cannabis study shows is that there may be conflicting information, which warrants more investigation.”
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