Simple, Cheap Colon Cancer Screening Very Effective

Testing for blood in the stool reduced the risk of death from colorectal cancer by as much as 32 percent and it seemed to keep the death rate low even after testing stopped, according to a new study from New England Journal of Medicine. The test that looks for blood in the feces is the safest, cheapest and least complicated.

People were either screened for fecal blood annually, every two years or not at and followed them for two six year windows. The people who received annual screening during those initial periods ultimately saw a 32 percent reduction in their risk of dying from colorectal cancer. With biennial screening, the risk was cut by 22 percent.

In total, 732 of 33,020 deaths over the 30 years were from colorectal cancer. The fact that the effect was sustained through 30 years is remarkable. The study of fecal occult blood testing provides the longest follow-up of any colorectal cancer screening study to date - an impressive 30 years - and shows that the benefits of screening by this method endure for the lifetime of the patient.

It also costs 99% less than a colonoscopy!