The 5 Most Popular Colon Cancer Screenings

Colonoscopy screening can reduce cancer risk and detect it early, when it is most treatable. It is one of the most effective tools available to prevent cancer deaths. In fact, if caught early, colon cancer has a survival rate of nearly 90 percent. And other, effective colon cancer screenings are also available.

Colonoscopy is by far the most effective and most popular screening. This is the only colon cancer screening test that can detect and remove precancerous polyps at the same time, potentially eliminating abnormal cells before they become cancerous. During a colonoscopy, your gastroenterologist can see inside the colon and large intestine by using a flexible camera called a colonoscope. It may sound a bit scary, but in the last several years the preparation has gotten easier and most patients report that the test is quick and relatively painless.

There are two versions of this non-invasive assessment, which essentially tests for blood in the stool. Patients take home a kit to provide the sample to the testing lab or physician.

Cologuard is an at-home test which examines whether there is cancerous DNA in the stool. A similar stool-based DNA test can also be ordered via your physician.

This is a type of X-ray that provides physicians with 3- and 4-D pictures of your colon and surrounding areas. These in-depth photos allow polyps and other abnormalities to be detected.

During a sigmoidoscopy your physician can look at the rectum and part of the colon to spot any abnormality. This type of test does not allow the provider to view the full colon, so it is less widely used than colonoscopy.

It is important to note that despite the availability of effective screening, death rate for colorectal cancer in adults ages 20 to 54 increased by one percent each year from 2004 to 2014. Before that time period, from the mid-1970s through the 1990s, as colonoscopy screening adoption increased rapidly, the death rate had been decreasing by almost two percent yearly. The colon cancer death rates for those over age 54 have declined, due to increased screenings in that population.

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