Why colonoscopy at 50

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Minus Related Pages. What Is Colorectal Cancer Screening? Fast Facts. If you are 45 to 75 years old, you should get screened for colorectal cancer. Millions of people in the United States are not getting screened as recommended.

They are missing the chance to prevent colorectal cancer or find it early, when treatment works best. If you think you may be at increased risk for colorectal cancer, speak with your doctor about when to begin screening, which test is right for you, and how often to get tested.

Eating well is one of the best ways to prepare for and recover from a colon cancer treatment session. Here are some nourishing meals and snacks for…. Colon cancer rates for people under age 50 have increased significantly over the past 10 years. March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month. Here's how to get involved and what you can do to show your support. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. Written by Dan Gray on October 7, Getty Images. To screen or not to screen? It systematically reviews the evidence of effectiveness of preventive services and develops recommendations.

American health insurance groups are required to cover, at no charge to the patient, any service that the USPSTF recommends with a grade A or B level of evidence, regardless of how much it costs. The task force recommendation means that insurers will be required to cover preventive procedures such as colonoscopies and stool tests designed to detect colon cancer in early stages.

The task force selected age 45 based on research showing that initiating screening at that age averted more early deaths than starting at age 50, with a relatively small increase in the number of colonoscopy complications. There is no change to the USPSTF recommendation to only selectively screen individuals aged 76 to 85, as research shows only small increases in life-years gained.

The accompanying JAMA editorial asked rhetorically whether the age of screening should be lowered even younger than age While the majority of young-onset CRC diagnoses and deaths occurs in persons 45 to 49, the rate of increase in young-onset CRC is actually steepest in the very youngest patients.

But even a very good test can be done too often. A grape-like growth, or polyp, in the colon or rectum is common in adults and usually harmless. But some polyps—known as adenomas— may eventually turn into cancer. Health care providers can spot and remove polyps during a colonoscopy, which uses a flexible, lighted tube to examine the colon and rectum. So most people need the exam just once a decade, and only a few with larger, more serious polyps may need it more often than every five years.

Colonoscopy is a safe procedure.