Anal Cancer

Anal cancer occurs when cancer cells form in the tissue of the anus.

While people may assume that anal cancer is similar to rectal cancer, it actually has more in common with cervical cancer.The tissue that lines the anus is similar to that which lines the cervix, and both diseases are typically caused by a human papillomavirus infection.

People who have compromised immune systems are more susceptible to anal cancer, symptoms of which may include bleeding from the rectum, itching in or around the rectum, or a lump or mass at the anal opening.

Doctors in the GW Cancer Center’s Gastrointestinal Cancer Program use the latest technology in gastrointestinal cancers to treat patients with anal cancer.