Colon cancer screening
According to the American Cancer Society, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer found in men and women in the United States (not counting skin cancers). While the exact cause of most colorectal cancers is unknown, there are certain known risk factors, such as age, a history of polyps, or a family history of colorectal cancer.
Screening guidelines for colon cancer are based on your individual risk category: average, increased, or high risk.
“Average risk” generally applies to people who:
- are 50 or older,
- have no history of adenoma or colorectal cancer,
- have no history of inflammatory bowel disease, and
- have no family history of colorectal cancer.
For average-risk individuals, screening options include colonoscopy, fecal immunochemical test (FIT), and flexible sigmoidoscopy.
A colonoscopy should be performed every 10 years, starting at age 50. If your colonoscopy shows any abnormal findings such as adenomatous polyps. The fecal immunochemical test (FIT), an at-home test kit available in most exam rooms, should be completed once a year. A flexible sigmoidoscopy should be performed every 5 years.
* Adenomatous and sessile serrated polyps are benign but abnormal growths of colon tissue in the colon or rectum. Although they are benign, they have the potential to gradually evolve into cancer over time. Your risk of developing colon cancer and your colonoscopy screening schedule depend on how many and what type of polyps you have.
“Increased risk” generally applies to people who have:
- a history of adenomatous polyps or sessile serrated polyps,*
- a personal history of colorectal cancer, or
- a family history of colorectal cancer.
Your gastroenterologist will discuss your individual risks and colonoscopy screening schedule with you.
“High risk”
High risk patients are those with hereditary colorectal cancer syndromes, which are uncommon and account for less than 10% of all colorectal cancers. People with these syndromes need regular screening beginning at age of 25, or 2 to 5 years before the age of the earliest incidence of colon cancer in the family.
Follow these links for more information about colon cancer and screening:
