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.