Conditions that increase risk of colorectal cancer are on the rise among millennials

Conditions that pose a risk for developing colorectal cancer — which is on the rise among millennials — are also increasing in that age group, according to new report from Blue Cross Blue Shield. Rates of obesity — which raises risk of colorectal cancer by a factor of 1.3 — rose 100% between 2014-2018 among those ages 24-39, according to the report. Incidence of type 1 and 2 diabetes and Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis, which nearly double the risk of colon cancer, also increased. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic hit, many people in the U.S. did not get screened as recommended, the report states, emphasizing the need to get this preventive service as practices around the country slowly reopen from the pandemic.