Source: New York Post
“A groundbreaking new study suggests that a gut-dwelling bacteria may be behind the recent surge in early-onset colorectal cancer cases. The potential culprit? Colibactin, a toxin produced by certain strains of E. coli that thrive in the colon and rectum. ‘We believe this exposure occurs very early in life — likely during the first decade — when children are infected,’ Dr. Ludmil Alexandrov, senior study author and a professor at the University of California San Diego, told The Post. Once thought of as a disease that strikes later in life, colorectal cancer is now on the rise among young people in at least 27 countries. In the US, the number of people under 55 being diagnosed has nearly doubled over the past decade, and more people are dying from the disease each year, according to the American Cancer Society.” (04/23/25)