Study: FOTB Kit and Reminder Up Colorectal Cancer Screening Rate

Mailing people over the age of 50 a special stool sample-based test for colorectal cancer -- called a fecal occult blood test (FOTB) -- and a reminder to use the kit greatly increases colorectal cancer screening rates, according to University of Minnesota researchers.

In a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 1,451 people aged 50 and older were divided into three groups.

Those in the control group received a questionnaire asking about their use of colorectal cancer screening tests. Those in the second group received the questionnaire and a fecal occult blood test kit.

Those in the third group received the questionnaire, the kit and reminders to complete the fecal occult blood test,

At the start of the study, 21.5 percent of the participants reported they followed the guidelines for fecal occult blood test.

A year later, the percentage of study participants who reported following the fecal occult blood test guidelines increased by 1.5 percent in the control group, by 16.9 percent in the group that received kits, and by 23.2 percent in the group that received both the kits and the reminders.

The results "suggest that the direct mailing of FOBT kits can be used to effect a change in the screening behavior of a large number of people who could benefit from regular colorectal cancer screening," the researchers reported.

Other Sources: Journal of the National Cancer Institute