Not uncommonly, an abdominal CT scan report may say there is thickening of the bowel wall in particular the rectum. The differentials here include:

1. normal bowel wall – perhaps the muscles the wall were contracted at the time of the scan

2. Rectal cancer in particular a circumferential tumour – therefore the next investigation from this is usually a colonoscopy

3. Inflammatory bowel disease, diverticular disease – but one would also see the diverticula etc