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Healthy appendix. Coloured X-ray of the human appendix and colon (large intestine). The appendix (centre left) is a narrow finger-shaped tube of the intestine, about 9 centimetres long in adults. Here it is straight but it is often curled. In structure it has a thick wall, narrow cavity, and a lining similar to the large intestine to which it is attached. At upper centre and lower right is the colon. The appendix is located near the point where the small intestine leads into the colon. The appendix has no known function, while the colon absorbs water and minerals from food that has already been digested. (KEYSTONE/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY)