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Colon Cancer Awareness Month Fact - The Different Forms of Colorectal Cancer

By Amber J. Tresca, About.com

Updated March 12, 2005

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There are actually 5 different types of colorectal cancer.
  • Adenocarcinoma: The most common type, develops from polyps in the colon, includes 90% to 95% of cases.
  • Sarcoma: Cancer in the connective tissues of the body, accounts for less than 2% of all cases.
  • Malignant melanoma: Uncommon, includes about 2% of cases, caused by the spread of melanoma (skin cancer) from another organ.
  • Carcinoid: Rare, at 1% of cases, grows very slowly, has a low chance of metastasizing.
  • Non-Hodgkins lymphoma: Rarest form at less than 0.5% of cases, is caused by the spread of cancer from a lymph node.
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