Why Colorectal Diseases are Important?

The shift of burden of diseases form communicable,highly transmissible diseases to non-communicablediseases is a tangible fact globally. in this shift some ofthe diseases have received appropriate consideration inprevention, diagnosis and treatment, while many of theothers are neglected. colorectal cancers (crc) are amongthose which have received some attention in all of theseaspects. crc is the third most common diagnosis of cancerfollowing lung and breast cancers and the fourthleading cause of cancer death following lung, stomachand liver (1). although the burden is the highest in highincome countries but there are many reports of increasingtrend of this cancer in middle income countries (2-4).this cancer is among the cancers with the highest predictionfor increase in the next decade in the world (5). crchas the second largest share of new cancer diagnosis costin the world (5). that is why it is not a surprise to see thisdisease among one of those issues with high allocationof resources for research and intervention. neverthelessthere are some ignored issues even in crc. the issue ofappropriate screening has recently gained some concernfrom economic viewpoint (6). young patients with crcare also another important concern. although crc ismostly diagnosed in sixth to eighth decades of life, butthere are near 50% cases which are diagnosed before ageof 50 or after age of 75 (7, 8).these two special groups arenot well represented in none of the research studies andpolicies concerning crc. higher percentage of more advanceddisease in these special groups with lower possibilityof cure makes these groups even more important.the burden of disease in low and middle income countriesis increasing and these countries usually do nothave enough resources to combat this increasing trend.constipation and anorectal diseases are among thoseannoying diseases with high prevalence but with inappropriateconsideration in health systems globally. mostof the current consideration on these type of diseases aretoward invasive surgical procedures or expensive and potentiallyharmful drugs, neglecting appropriate preventivemeasures and cost effective care (9, 10). the burden ofthese apparently benign but annoying diseases can notbe overemphasized.at the same time, the increasing trend of sexually transmitteddiseases along with change in sexual behavior hasincreased the burden of anorectal diseases substantially.all of these makes colorectal research an importantagenda in health research. we need more focused researchwith the ability to change the health policies onthese issues. at the same time we need better understandingof the pathophysiology of these diseases withmore attentive basic science research to have a morescientific approach in prevention, diagnosis, treatmentand rehabilitation of these diseases. the epidemiologyof these diseases and specially a transparent view of thesocial factors in the development and presentation ofthese diseases are among important derelict subjects (11).importance of social support in the care of affected patientsand their families need more consideration (12, 13).we would try to develop a media for these types of discussionand presentations in this new journal devoted tocolorectal research.