Colon Cancer Screening

Colon Cancer
Colon Cancer Screening
Colon Cancer Symptoms
Colon Cancer Stages
Colon Cancer Treatment

Cancer Types
Breast Cancer
Colon Cancer
Ovarian Cancer
Prostate Cancer

The goal of the colon cancer screening is to discover cancer before symptoms arise. Discovering colon cancer at early stages greatly increases the survival rate of the patient. Below are the common screening methods:

Digital rectal exam (DRE): The doctor will feel the anus and rectum with his/her finger to detect any lumps.
Fecal occult blood test: Tests for the presence of blood in stool. Because this is method can produce false positives (blood in stool does not necessarily indicate colon cancer is present) and false negatives (those with colon cancer do not always show a positive result), this is done with colonscopy or sigmoidoscopy. This is recommended every year for people over the age of 50.
Stool DNA test: Test for the presence of common DNA mutations associated with colon cancer. This is not a common test.
Barium enema (BE) and double contrast barium enema (DCBE): Barium, which is a contrast dye, is placed into the colon. X-ray is then taken on the colon to detect any lumps. If this procedure shows any abnormalities, colonscopy will usually be done next. This is recommended every 5 years for people over the age of 50.
Flexible sigmoidoscopy: The doctor will insert a thin and lighted tube to examine the rectum and the last two inches of the colon to detect for any polyps or cancer. This is recommended every 5 years for people over the age of 50.
Colonscopy: Colonscopy is similar to sigmoidoscopy, but the instrument used is longer so the doctor can examine the entire colon instead of just the last two inches. Biopsy can be done during this procedure. This is recommended every 10 years for people over the age of 50.
Virtual (CT) colonscopy: In this method, instead of a tube being inserted into the patient, a compterized tomography (CT) machine is used to take the image of the colon. If abnormalities are found with this method, it is still necessary to perform a regular colonscopy for confirmation and biopsy purposes. Because of this, there is still debate in the medical community on the value of virtual colonscopy.

If you are of a high-risk group, such as having a close relative or family member having colon cancer before the age of 50, you should start screening for colon cancer before the age of 50.