Do you need to get a colonoscopy ? It depends on your age, but the answer is yes. It can be a life saving procedure to detect colon cancer. I am seeing more and more colon cancer in younger individuals. I had mine in November 2022. So I decided to look at some reading and statistics.
In the cross-sectional study with a nested cohort of more than 7,000 patients undergoing colonoscopy for screening, 30% of those ages 76-80 years had a life expectancy below 10 years, a percentage that jumped to 71% for those ages 81-85 years, and to 100% for the smaller group of patients age 86 and up
Among the full study population, 37.7% had a non-advanced neoplasia and 5.7% had an advanced neoplasia, including 0.2% with colorectal cancer (CRC). Detection of advanced neoplasia increased with each age group (from 5.4% to 6.2% to 9.5%, respectively; P=0.02).
This says it all. The answer is a definite YES. Yes as a physician we should look at the patients age and their expected life expectancy. Yes it is an invasive procedure but it can save your life and detect cancer early. The physician has to really listen to the patient about their bowel habits, changes in weight and dietary lifestyle. If you are thinking about your colonoscopy—book it today
Until tomorrow…