James Van Der Beek was only 48. That alone should stop us. Colorectal cancer is no longer a disease we see primarily in the elderly. Over the last decade, rates have been rising in adults under 50. In fact, it is now one of the leading causes of cancer-related death in younger adults. As a gastroenterologist, I’ve watched this shift happen in real time. Many younger patients are diagnosed at later stages — not because the cancer is more aggressive, but because symptoms are dismissed, delayed, or