Cancer of anus

Visit our Colorectal Cancer category page for the latest news on this subject, or sign up to our newsletter to receive the latest updates on Colorectal Cancer. Squamous cell carcinomas in the anal canal have grown beyond the surface and into the deeper layers of the lining as opposed to carcinoma in situ. Various risk factors are linked to anal cancer, but infection with two types of the human papilloma virus HPV appear to underlie 79 percent of cases. The anal canal is about an inch and a half long. Lymph nodes that contain cancer may also be removed during this operation. These cancers are much more common in the stomach or small intestine, but rarely they can start in the anal region. The transitional zone has squamous cells and glandular cells - these produce mucus which helps the stool feces pass through the anus smoothly.

Introduction to Grants Process. If cancer remains after treatment, more chemotherapy and radiation therapy may be given to avoid the need for a permanent colostomy. Cancer cells also have the ability to invade blood vessels and lymphatic channels and spread, or metastasize , to other parts of the body.