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• A change in bowel habits. You know your body and any change is a variable that you should share with your doctor.
  Bleeding from your rectum, including bright red or dark blood in your stools or stools that look black. You may notice blood on the paper or perhaps on your undergarments. Bleeding is never normal and it will not resolve on its own.
• Constant or frequent diarrhea, constipation, or a feeling that your bowel doesn’t empty completely. Despite being uncomfortable, this is a sign that your bowel isn’t functioning as it should. * Stools that are narrow (may be as narrow as a pencil).
• Abdominal pain or problems with gas or bloating. Gas pain, while fairly common, is actually a symptom of distress and when your body is in distress it will tell you in every way it can. There is no such thing as normal pain.
• Unexplained weight loss. Your body may not be absorbing all the nutrients it needs because it’s fighting something else. If you haven’t changed your eating, your exercise plan or your general health habits but you’re suddenly losing weight it’s time to call your doctor.
• Constant fatigue. Fatigue can be as mild as general tiredness or as extreme as total exhaustion. It can be a moderate to lack of energy or a tremendous loss of strength. Either are symptoms that must be shared with your doctor.

Even if you don’t have any of the symptoms above, you may still have some risk factors that would indicate the need for a screening test. Screenings such as sigmoidoscopy and colonoscopy helps your doctor find a certain diseases and conditions before any symptoms appear. Some screening tests for colorectal cancer can find and remove small precancerous growths called polyps in the colon and rectum. If these are found and removed early, they cannot turn into cancer.

The specialists at Virginia Colonoscopy have done over 40,000 procedures on people just like you. If you have questions, ask them. If you have concerns, let us address them and if you think you have any of the symptoms above call us immediately. A simple screening test can save your life. >