Colon Tests are Just as Important as Other Health Screenings
SIOUX FALLS (March 1, 2008) - While colon cancer screenings are just as important as regular pap smears or mammograms for women over age 50, many tend to put them off.
Forty percent of South Dakotans over age 50 report they have not had any form of colon screening, said Dr. Cristina Hill Jensen, gastroenterologist with Avera Gastroenterology Clinic of Sioux Falls. Yet one in 18 women will develop colorectal cancer within her lifetime. In 2007, an estimated 150,000 new cases were diagnosed among men and women. After lung cancer, colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of cancer deaths, with an estimated 52,000 deaths annually.
"We see an increase in incidence of these cancers beginning at the 55 to 60 age range," Dr. Hill Jensen said. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 90 percent of cases are diagnosed in people over 50. Colon screenings are recommended beginning at age 50, when doctors can spot and remove polyps that may eventually become cancerous. "Many colon cancers come from small polyps which, over a span of 10 years, can develop into colon cancer," she said. Screening earlier than age 50 is recommended for people who have a family history of colorectal cancer.
American Cancer Society screening guidelines call for one of the following: a colonoscopy every 10 years, a flexible sigmoidoscopy or barium enema every five years, or fecal occult blood tests every year. Dr. Hill Jensen recommends colonoscopy, because it examines the entire colon, and polyps can be removed at the same time the test is performed.
"We like to find it before it's cancer - while it's still a polyp," said Dr. Michael Robinson, oncologist with Avera Medical Oncology and Hematology. "It makes a huge difference."
Even if a polyp becomes malignant - if the malignancy is found in an early stage - the cancer is treatable surgically with close to a 100-percent cure rate, Dr. Robinson said. Colorectal cancer that has spread beyond the colon to lymph nodes or other organs may require additional treatment of chemotherapy and radiation.
Having a colonoscopy every 10 years will in most cases catch polyps before they become malignant. "People may think it can't happen to me, but unfortunately, it can. Cancer doesn't pick and choose based on gender or socioeconomic status," Dr. Robinson said.
Joann Redenius' colon cancer was found in 2002 at age 65, when she went to the emergency room with abdominal pain. After surgery and chemotherapy, she remains cancer free, five years later.
Even before she received the diagnosis, Redenius, a lifetime Sioux Falls resident, somehow knew it was cancer. "I had made up my mind that I was going to go through it and come out of it. You make up your mind you're going to fight it… that's all you can do." She also recognizes the importance of prevention through screening, and encourages friends and family to be tested.
Women may be prone to put off a colonoscopy due to fear of pain, or embarrassment. Dr. Hill Jensen said sedative medications make the procedure itself very comfortable. In fact, many patients wake up after it's over and ask if the doctor is ready to start. The aspect patients probably dislike the most is colon prep for the test, which involves drinking liquid laxative the night before the exam.
Most colon cancers are slow-growing and can be detected long before symptoms arise. However, people should see their doctor if they experience any of these symptoms:
A change in stool patterns
Blood in the stool
Unexplained weight loss
Abdominal pain
Information about colorectal cancer and many other health topics can be found on the Avera McKennan homepage. Click on "health library" in the upper right corner of your screen.
