Study: More Colorectal Cancer Screenings Would Prevent 18,000 Deaths

Americans are not taking sufficient advantage of life-saving preventive health services including colorectal cancer screening, according to a study by Partnership for Prevention.

The study, sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, prioritized 30 preventive health services recommended for average-risk people based on health benefits and cost effectiveness.

Screening of people 50 and over for colon cancer ranked high on the study's list, but fewer than one-third of those Americans who might benefit have such a screening, according to the report published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

In 1999, only 21 percent of those 50 and older reported having a fecal occult blood test in the last year, and only 34 percent reported having a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy in the previous five years. If screening with FOBT and sigmoidoscopy were delivered to all people 50 and older on a regular basis, it would prevent around 18,000 deaths in one year, according to the study's findings.

"These services are an excellent deal for patients, insurers and healthcare providers, but they're not always covered and they're not always delivered," said Ashley Coffield, co-author of the study. "All of these services provide a big bang for the buck"

Other sources: American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Partnership for Prevention