Screening for Colorectal Cancer

Abstract

GOLORECTAL cancer is a leading cause of death from cancer in the United States, with approximately 140,000 new cases and 60,000 deaths per year.¹ A 50-year-old person has about a 5 percent risk of having colorectal cancer by the age of 80 and a 2.5 percent risk of dying from it.² To reduce the morbidity and mortality due to colorectal cancer, some professional organizations have proposed that asymptomatic persons without known risk factors be screened to detect cancer at a curable stage.^{3 4 5} The rationale for screening is based on the widely held view⁶ that most colorectal cancers are the product . . .