Saving lives with colonoscopy: colorectal cancer mortality drops if you do it at least once in lifetime.

Flexible sigmoidoscopy offered at least once for men and women between 55 and 64 years has significant impact in colon cancer mortality.
Study involving more than 170,000 women and men selected a group invited for screening or control group. Primary outcome was incidence and mortality from colorectal cancer. Based on intention to treat analysis, the colorectal cancer incidence in intervention group reduced 23% and mortality by 31%. Using per-protocol analysis the reduction reached 33% and 43% for incidence and mortality, respectively.
These numbers are impressive and reinforce the role of colonoscopy now clearly associated with colorectal cancer mortality.

So, what to do?

If you are over 55 do it at least once, with long lasting benefits.

See article at The Lancet: http://ht.ly/1E6Fo