DeSoto Co. woman encourages colorectal screening following cancer diagnosis [Video]

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – A DeSoto County woman is encouraging colorectal cancer screenings following a cancer diagnosis in her late 40s.

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, an important month for Ashleigh Parker of DeSoto County.

Parker was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer at 48 years old in 2019. At the time, the recommended screening age for colorectal cancer was 50 years old.

“I actually was having some issues that I just kind of rationalized as stress and middle age and being a mom who had four kids and was really busy,” Parker explained. “I had scans done and it showed that it had spread to my lymph nodes. I also had three or four spots in my liver.”

In 2021, the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force changed the recommended screening age for colorectal cancer from 50 to 45 because of patients like Parker.

“It’s the first leading cause of cancer deaths in males under the age of 50,” explained …