Screening should be your next milestone.
If you’re 45 years or older—at average risk for colon cancer—you need to screen now. Even if you don’t have symptoms.1-3 Colon cancer is the third most commonly occurring cancer in both men and women.3
WHO SHOULD GET SCREENED?
Screening should be your next milestone.
If you’re 45 years or older—at average risk for colon cancer—you need to screen now. Even if you don’t have symptoms.1-3 Colon cancer is the third most commonly occurring cancer in both men and women.3
COLON CANCER IS NOT JUST A “MAN’S DISEASE.”
Notably, almost half of all new colon cancer cases in the US are diagnosed in women.4 So screening is just as important for women as for men.
SOME PEOPLE ARE MORE AT RISK THAN OTHERS.
Statistically, Black Americans are more likely to develop colon cancer than any other group. And both Black and Hispanic Americans are more likely to be diagnosed with colon cancer at later stages. This is partly due to differences in access to screening and healthcare.5
THE RISK OF COLON CANCER INCREASES WITH AGE.6
Even if you’ve already been tested, be sure to screen in the future. Fact is, screening regularly may increase the potential for finding and treating colon cancer.7
ARE YOU AT “AVERAGE RISK” FOR COLON CANCER?
If you’re not at high risk for colon cancer, you are at average risk. And people at average risk still need to get screened. People are at average risk if they do not have8:
- A personal history of colon cancer or certain types of polyps
- A family history of colon cancer
- A personal history of inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease)
- A confirmed or suspected hereditary colon cancer syndrome, such as familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) or Lynch syndrome (hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer or HNPCC)
- A personal history of getting radiation to the abdomen (belly) or pelvic area to treat a prior cancer
References: 1. Wolf AMD, Fontham ETH, Church TR, et al. Colorectal cancer screening for average-risk adults: 2018 guidelines update from the American Cancer Society. CA Cancer J Clin. 2018;68(4):250-281. 2. American Cancer Society. Colorectal Cancer Facts & Figures 2023–2025. Atlanta: American Cancer Society, Inc. 2022. 3. PDQ® Cancer Genetics Editorial Board. PDQ Genetics of Colorectal Cancer. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute. Available at: https://www.cancer.gov/types/colorectal/hp/colorectal-genetics-pdq. Accessed January 10th, 2024. [PMID: 26389505] 4. Siegel RL, Miller KD, Fuchs HE, Jemal A. Cancer statistics, 2021. CA Cancer J Clin. 2021;71:7-33. doi:10.3322/caac/21654. 5. Jackson CS, Oman M, Vega KJ. Health disparities in colorectal cancer among racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. J Gastrointest Oncol. 2016;(Suppl 1):S32-S43. 6. American Cancer Society. Colorectal cancer causes, risk factors, and prevention. Accessed January 10th, 2024. https://www.cancer.org/content/dam/CRC/PDF/ Public/8605.00.pdf 7. American Cancer Society. Cancer Prevention & Early Detection Facts & Figures 2023-2024. Atlanta: American Cancer Society; 2023-2024. 8. American Cancer Society. Colorectal cancer early detection, diagnosis and staging. Detection and diagnosis. Accessed January 10th, 2024. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/colon-rectal-cancer/detection-diagnosis-staging.html.