Methods for the diagnosis of rectal cancer

Rectal cancer is a disease with no obvious early symptoms, so some patients miss the best time to treat the disease because they ignore the early symptoms. If you can understand the diagnosis methods for rectal cancer early and go to the hospital for examination in time when you find abnormal symptoms, you can find the disease, thus avoiding delays in treatment.

The methods used to diagnose rectal cancer are as follows:

1. Digital rectal examination

Clinically, about 90% of rectal cancer patients, especially lower rectal cancer, can be detected very early by digital examination. This diagnostic method is simple, feasible and effective, and helps to determine the degree of infiltration and size of the palpable mass, or whether the mass is fixed, and whether there is an implanted mass outside the intestinal wall or in the pelvic cavity.

2. Proctoscopy or sigmoidoscopy

Proctoscopy is a type of examination that follows the digital rectal examination. It can observe the upper and lower edges of the cancerous mass, the distance from the anal edge, and the shape. The mass tissue is examined for pathological sections to determine the nature of the mass and the degree of differentiation of the mass. The upper cancer and rectum are located in the rectum and cannot be touched by fingers.

3. Barium enema and fiber colonoscopy

Because fiber colonoscopy and barium enema are not very helpful in diagnosing rectal cancer, they are not included in routine examinations and are only used to rule out colon and multiple tumors.