When Fredrick Allen Rivers Jr. was diagnosed with colon cancer at age 31, the New Jersey resident had never heard of anyone so young getting a disease more commonly associated with aging.
But between 1995 and 2019, colorectal cancer rates have doubled among people under 55, even as the overall incidence declined, according to new data from the American Cancer Society. Adults younger than 55 accounted for about 20% of colorectal cancer diagnoses in 2019.
In New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the disease is even more prevalent than in other parts of the country. Across all ages, the incidence rate is 39.7 cases per 100,000 people, compared to a national average of 36 cases per 100,000, according to an American Cancer Society report released Mar. 1.
