No. While there is a higher incidence of colorectal cancer in men, colorectal cancer affects both men and women. In Singapore, colorectal cancer is the most common cancer in men and the second most common cancer in women after breast cancer. There are two main kinds of colorectal cancers – the right- and left-sided cancers.

The right-sided colorectal cancer is prevalent in women. It involves cancer in the caecum (a pouch connecting the junction of the small and large intestines), and the ascending colon to the upper-left quadrant of the human abdomen. 

On the other hand, the left-sided colorectal cancer is more predominant in male patients. The left-sided colorectal cancer consists of cancers at the top-right quadrant of the human abdomen and regions further down the large-intestine, such as the rectum.

Taken together, while it is true that colorectal cancer can happen in both genders, physiological differences in hormones and genes between males and females can contribute differently to colorectal cancer.