People aged 50 or older are being encouraged to attend for colorectal cancer screening by doctors and nurses at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

This is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and an opportunity to educate people about this highly preventable and highly curable disease. Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the US, claiming around 57,000 lives a year, according to the American Cancer Society.

Experts at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute would like people aged 50 and over to have a regular screen for colorectal cancer. This detects the polyps which often progress to the disease, and provides an opportunity for their prompt removal. The symptoms of colorectal cancer include blood in the stool, change in bowel habit, and unexplained weight loss. If you have any such symptoms, see your physician without delay.

Age is a major risk factor, with more than 90 per cent of new cases of colorectal cancer occurring in the over-50s. Other, preventable, risk factors include high fat diet, obesity and a sedentary lifestyle. The majority of colorectal cancer deaths are preventable, and attending for a screen is a major factor in avoiding the disease.

Source

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute 5th March 2003