U.S. adults should choose the type of colon cancer screening they feel most comfortable with, the government-backed U.S. Preventive Services Task Force now advises. The updated recommendation, directed at people ages 50 to 75 years, is a departure from the influential panel's 2008 guidance, which said people in that age group should be screened on a specific time table using one of four tests.
Multiple options for colorectal cancer screening are effective, said Dr. Douglas Owens, a former member of the USPSTF who worked on the new recommendation. "Our recommendation is people discuss the strengths and limitations of the different options with their clinicians," he said. "Make a choice they can follow through with."
"What really matters is they get screened for colorectal cancer," he told Reuters Health.
One in 21 U.S. men and one in 23 women can expect to develop colon or rectal cancers, according the American Cancer Society.
Despite research showing that screening can reduce the risk of death from these malignancies, testing rates remain low. A May 2015 study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found only 25 percent of uninsured people and 60 percent of insured people were being screened for colon cancer as recommended.
Multiple options for colorectal cancer screening are effective, said Dr. Douglas Owens, a former member of the USPSTF who worked on the new recommendation. "Our recommendation is people discuss the strengths and limitations of the different options with their clinicians," he said. "Make a choice they can follow through with."
"What really matters is they get screened for colorectal cancer," he told Reuters Health.
One in 21 U.S. men and one in 23 women can expect to develop colon or rectal cancers, according the American Cancer Society.
Despite research showing that screening can reduce the risk of death from these malignancies, testing rates remain low. A May 2015 study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found only 25 percent of uninsured people and 60 percent of insured people were being screened for colon cancer as recommended.
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