The study also found that colibactin-related mutations account for around 15% of what are known as APC driver mutations – some of the earliest genetic alterations that directly promote cancer development – in bowel cancer.

Experts published a new study on Wednesday that found a rise in colorectal cancer in young adults could be linked to an increased exposure to a gut toxin that has been tied to the disease for decades.

The latest evidence, published earlier this week, suggests childhood exposure as young as 10 years old to a toxin released by E. coli bacteria could increase the risk of colon cancer by triggering inflammation and altering the balance of the gut microbiome.

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of all cancer-related deaths in the U.S. Last year saw a slight increase in deaths, with just over 53,000 reported. The mortality rate has also increased by about 1 percentage point each year since the mid-2000s. A new study has identified a potential link between a toxin in the gut and the sharp rise of colon cancer.

Colorectal (bowel) cancer is increasingly striking people in their 20s, 30s and 40s in the US and UK. E. coli, a foodborne bacteria that infects around 75,000-90,000 Americans each year and around 1,500 Britons, may be to blame.