If you’re like most of the population of the United States, you’ll do just about anything to avoid having to get a colonoscopy. Every time March rolls around, you duck your head when you drive past signs promoting Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, and plug your ears during your physical exams when your doctor firmly advises you that you are long past due for a screening.
We don’t want to join in with the rest of the world, giving you a finger-wagging reprimand to finally schedule your colorectal cancer screening. Instead, we’d rather debunk the 5 most common reasons given for dodging a screening so that you run out of excuses!
Who needs a colon cancer screening
The American Cancer Society recommends that adults 45 years and older – or folks under 45 with a family history of colorectal cancer, or previous polyps – should schedule a colonoscopy.
If you’re 45 or older with an average risk of colon cancer and with no family history of the disease, you may be able to take an at-home test (such as Cologuard or FIT test) for your screening. Ask your primary care provider if you’re eligible.
If the at-home test results are negative, a colonoscopy is not required. But if the test results are positive for potential abnormalities, a colonoscopy is the next step.
5 common reasons people avoid a colon cancer screening:
1.) My insurance company won’t cover it.
This is one of the most frequently heard excuses from patients by their family doctors, and is often untrue.
When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (now known as the Affordable Care Act, or ACA) was passed, insurance companies became required to provide appropriate preventative coverage for insured individuals. This applies to private insurance plans as well as Medicare. The requirement includes a routine preventive screening for colon cancer every set number of years for patients at average risk, and should be payable in full by most insurance companies. Diagnostic screenings may come with a fee.
Naturally, you must call your insurance company to confirm your coverage. For people of average risk with no documented risk factors, the first colonoscopy will typically be recommended at age 45 and every 10 years thereafter.
2.) No one in my family has had colorectal cancer, so I’m in no danger.
Of the 150,000 Americans that develop colorectal cancer each year, 85% of them have no family history of the disease. Colorectal cancers are the third most common cancer-related cause of death in the United States. And they are preventable through screenings.
3.) I already had a colon cancer screening in the past, so I don’t need another one.
Colon and rectal polyps may take years to develop and become cancerous. The growth of polyps is directly related to age. As men and women grow older, their chances of developing polyps increases.
In fact, just because you had a screening at age 45 does not guarantee that your colon is still polyp-free a decade later. If your past screening colonoscopy found no polyps, and you still have no family history of polyps or colon cancer, you should get a screening at least once every 10 years (or sooner, depending your doctor’s recommendation or if you have concerning symptoms).
4.) I couldn’t handle drinking the prep liquid or having to run to the bathroom all night. A colonoscopy is just too uncomfortable.
There is some physical and psychological prep required before getting a colonoscopy. Patients will have to change their diet a few days in advance, fast and drink up to 2 gallons of prep solution the day before to clean out their colon. All of this liquid intake does require more trips to the bathroom. Now, however, there are other prep options that require patients to drink a lower volume of liquid.
Your gastroenterologist can advise on which prep regimen is most appropriate for you to follow before your scheduled procedure.
Most patients are able to have their colonoscopy at an outpatient endoscopy center like WWMG’s, which is staffed by our gastroenterologists. With the help of conscious sedation, patients experience minimal discomfort during their procedures.
Within a short span of time after the physician has completed the screening, most patients are right back to normal with little to no residual unpleasantness. If there is discomfort, it normally dissipates within a few hours. Because of the sedation, patients cannot drive until the next day.
And patients who have their procedure at an outpatient center get to go home the same day and are not required to stay overnight.
5.) My chances of actually getting colon cancer are slim.
According to research published in March 2014 by the American Cancer Society, they estimated that 71,830 men and 65,000 women would be diagnosed with colorectal cancer that year; and that 26,270 men and 24,040 women would die of the disease.
The study also showed that the incidence of colorectal cancer among adults aged 50 years or older had fallen by 30% in the US over the previous 10 years. This was attributed primarily to the widespread adoption of colonoscopy screenings, which had almost tripled among adults aged 50-75 years between 2000 and 2010 (19% in 2000; 55% in 2010).
The truth about colon cancer
The truth is that almost all colorectal cancers begin as a very small polyp. When a patient has a colonoscopy, any small polyps found are removed and never have the chance to develop into cancer. But, if you don’t ever get your colonoscopy, any existing polyps in your colon may eventually develop into cancer. A polyp is easily treated. Cancer is not.
In fact, colorectal cancer is the most preventable cancer, and yet, it is still the 3rd leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States, killing an average of 50,000 Americans each year.
Why? It’s because people are not getting screened. Many patients develop colorectal cancer because they didn’t take the advice of their primary care provider, gastroenterologist, or family member to get their routine screening.
Who is at the highest risk of getting cancer?
People are at a higher risk of developing colon or rectal cancer if they have any of the following conditions:
- Ulcerative colitis
- Crohn’s disease
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Lynch Syndrome/HNPCC or
- if you have a family history of colon cancer
Even folks with an average risk of colorectal cancer should get screened to ensure good health.
Think of this—nearly all of the 150,000 cases of colorectal cancer that are currently diagnosed each year in the U.S. could have been prevented or detected early if people had had their recommended screenings. If that doesn’t give a nudge in the right direction, we don’t know what will.
Request an appointment with your primary care provider today to discuss getting screened for colon cancer. If you already have a referral to WWMG Gastroenterology, call us at 425-259-3122 to schedule your colonoscopy. It could save your life.