40% prevention rate for colorectal cancers
According to a large, long-term study from Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), 40 percent of all colorectal cancers might be prevented if people underwent regular colonoscopy screening. The new research also supports existing guidelines that recommend that people with an average risk of colorectal cancer should have a colonoscopy every 10 years. The new study helps address previous uncertainty about the effectiveness of colonoscopy in reducing colorectal cancer incidence and mortality — particularly among people with cancer that originates in the proximal, or upper, part of the colon. The study will appear in the Sept. 19 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer-related death in the nation. “Colonoscopy is the most commonly used screening test in the U.S., but there was insufficient evidence on how much it reduces the risk of proximal colon cancer and how often people should undergo the procedure,” said Shuji...