Home > Cancer and Treatments > Gastrointestinal Cancers

Colorectal Cancer

Our program is staffed by a team of experts in gastroenterology, medical oncology, surgery, nuclear medicine, pathology, radiation oncology, radiology, social work and nursing.

Patient Care and Treatment
Colon cancer is treated in the Multidisciplinary Colorectal Cancer Clinic at the University of Michigan. Our clinic has been named a Blue Distinction Center for Complex and Rare Cancers as part of a national program by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. That means we offer a comprehensive inpatient cancer care program, delivered by a multidisciplinary team with subspecialty training and distinguished clinical expertise in treating complex and rare subtypes of cancer.

Detection and Prevalance
Screening is a key component to detecting colorectal cancer in the early stage. A colonoscopy is the most preferred method of screening. In fact with a colonoscopy if there is any detection of possible cancer with the presence of polyps, they can be removed and sent to pathology for further testing. For more information, please visit Colorectal Cancer Detection and Prevention.

One of the many factors that can predict having colorectal cancer is family history. As a patient you have access to one of the leading cancer genetics programs to help identify genetic risk factors and provide screening recommendations for you and your family.

Research and innovation
Our research program is just as collaborative as our clinical program. By involving more than 40 researchers from 18 departments we have made significant strides in researching gastrointestinal cancers. Our goal has been focused upon what biolgic, genetic and/or molecular processes have to take place to give rise to the development of gastrointestinal cancer. We are dedicated to moving our research from the laboratory to the bedside and, to that end, offer a number of clinical trials.

Support
Since our program is part of the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, our patients have access to Patient/Family Support Services. To fully understand what this means, please take time to visit the For Cancer Center Patients area of this website. We outline the services available to our patients at every point in their care.

Make an appointment/referral

To make an appointment, please contact 734-647-8902. If you would like to refer a patient, please contact our M-Line service: 800-962-3555. For more information, visit our Make an Appointment web page.

Still have questions?

The nurses at Cancer AnswerLine™ have answers. Call 1-800-865-1125 and you'll get a personal response from one of our registered nurses, who have years of experience in caring for people with cancer.