Childhood exposure to toxin potentially linked to early-onset colorectal cancer

E. Coli. Credit: Getty/luismmolina

By Sarah Lowden

Exposure in childhood to a toxin produced by Escherichia coli may be linked to the rise in early-onset colorectal cancer, researchers have discovered.

An international team of scientists, including from the UK and led by the University of California San Diego, believe their findings could help explain why the cancer is on the rise among young people in at least 27 countries.