Learn
Signs, family history, and why earlier detection matters
Learn the signs. Know your family history. Support the mission if you wish.
Philadelphia Is LoveCatch It Early
Signs
Know what public education asks people to notice
Symptoms are not a diagnosis. If something feels wrong, a qualified clinician is the right next conversation — not this website.
- A change in bowel habits that lasts more than a few days
- A feeling that you need to have a bowel movement that is not relieved by having one
- Rectal bleeding with bright red blood
- Blood in the stool, which may look dark brown or black
- Cramping or abdominal pain
- Weakness and fatigue
- Unintended weight loss
Public-education signs drawn from American Cancer Society colorectal-cancer education. They are not a checklist for self-diagnosis.
Family history
Cancer runs in my family.
Family history can change the conversation about timing and testing. Bring what you know to a qualified clinician or genetic-counseling resource.
Why 45
I'm 45 or older.
U.S. preventive-service guidance discusses beginning average-risk screening at 45. Talk with a qualified clinician about what is right for you.
Why Catch It Early?
When it is found matters.
five-year relative survival when colorectal cancer is found localized.
vs
after distant spread.
When it is found matters.
Population-level five-year relative-survival statistics. They describe groups in published epidemiology — they do not imply an individual prognosis.
What you can do
Connect to resources, or support the mission
Choose the circumstance that fits. We'll point you toward qualified public resources — not a diagnosis, and not a treatment plan from this website.
Sources & review
Review date 2026-09-02. Campaign figures pending independent medical review. Medical content on this site is educational context, not a diagnosis or a personal prognosis.
- Catch It Early 2026 campaign epidemiology appendix — Daily diagnosis and mortality projections and younger-adult context as used in the campaign deck. Population-level; not a live feed.
- Five-year relative survival, localized vs distant (campaign accountability figures) — 91.3% vs 16.9% are population-level five-year relative-survival statistics. They do not describe an individual outcome.
- American Cancer Society — colorectal cancer — Public education on colorectal cancer.
- CDC — colorectal cancer — Screening and prevention information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- U.S. Preventive Services Task Force — colorectal cancer screening — Independent screening recommendation (including the age-45 conversation). Not medical advice from Philadelphia Is Love.