It May Be Unpleasant, but it Saves Lives
Any news of a win against cancer is good news…especially when we are talking about on of the deadliest forms of cancer.
Here’s that good news, a NEJM study summarized by the New York Times (and including some thoughts from an OHSU cancer specialist):
A new study provides what independent researchers call the best evidence yet that colonoscopy — perhaps the most unloved cancer screening test — prevents deaths. Although many people have assumed that colonoscopy must save lives because it is so often recommended, strong evidence has been lacking until now.
In patients tracked for as long as 20 years, the death rate from colorectal cancer was cut by 53 percent in those who had the test and whose doctors removed precancerous growths, known as adenomatous polyps, researchers reported on Wednesday in The New England Journal of Medicine. The test examines the inside of the intestine with a camera-tipped tube.
“For any cancer screening test, reduction of cancer-related mortality is the holy grail,” said Dr. Gina Vaccaro, a gastrointestinal oncologist at the Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health and Science University who was not involved in the research. “This study does show that mortality is reduced if polyps are removed, and 53 percent is a very robust reduction.”
You can read the full story here.
Up here in Oregon, we’re pleased to see that The Oregonian is also sharing the news. A recent Editorial in the paper can be found here.
As an over-50 person and health care provider, I would like to add that conscious sedation medications are both very effective and short-acting. Consumers should not fear pain or embarrassment; there literally is no memory of the procedure itself, just the before and after. The health care personnel where I received my “age 50 gift” were exceptionally kind and professional.
Teresa,
That is how I feel too. I volunteer at a local hospital, and whenever a patient is suggested a test of colonoscopy, outright rejection is usually the first thing that happens. I believe anything that might let you live longer is anything that should be nothing. There is nothing embarrassing about colonscopy or whatnot.