Colon cancer screening at age 45: Here ’s what a gastroenterologist thinks

The American Cancer Society (ACS) recently released new guidelines regarding colorectal cancer screening for the average-risk individual. The big news is that they now recommend that screening for colorectal cancer begin at age 45 rather than age 50. This reduction in the starting age was in reaction to recent data showing that colon cancer is increasing in younger Americans for unclear reasons. By screening people at a younger age, the hope is that we can detect and prevent colon cancer in more people. The ACS states that 20 percent of new cases of colorectal cancer occur in the younger-than-55 crowd. Furthermore, despite a general downward trend in colorectal cancer in the over-50 population, the risk is actually rising slightly in the subgroup of people aged 50 to 54. These are the cases of cancer the new guidelines are trying to prevent. The ACS is pragmatic in acknowledging that people don’t typically sign up for a colonoscopy exactly on their fiftieth birthday; in fact many wait a few years or more after age 50 to get screened. By pushing the starting age up by five years there will likely be a benefit to these patients who would otherwise be late to the colonoscopy party. Continue reading ... Your patients are rating you online: How to respond. Manage your online reputation: A social media guide. Find out how.
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Conditions Gastroenterology Oncology/Hematology Source Type: blogs