Submitted by Digestive Disease Endoscopy Center
When combining men and women in the United States, colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of cancer deaths, impacting more than 132,700 adults who are diagnosed with this devastating disease every year. However, it is extremely preventable if polyps that lead to the cancer are detected and removed, and it is very curable if the cancer is detected in its early stages. In fact, 90 percent of these deaths can be prevented with a simple colon screening procedure. A colonoscopy is not painful, takes about 30 minutes, and is often included as a free preventative test with most insurance companies. However, approximately one in three adults between 50 and 75 years of age — that’s 23 million people — are not getting screened as recommended.
Screening colonoscopy
A screening colonoscopy is performed on a patient who does not have signs or symptoms in the lower gastrointestinal tract prior to the scheduled test. Any symptom prior to the procedure that is noted as a symptom by the physician in your medical record could change this from a screening colonoscopy to a diagnostic colonoscopy. The symptoms of colon cancer include, but are not limited to the following:
- Change in bowel habits
- Diarrhea
- Constipation
- Rectal bleeding
- Abdominal pain
- Unintended weight loss
- Anemia
Diagnostic colonoscopy
A diagnostic colonoscopy is performed when other symptoms or tests indicate the presence of colon changes that are of concern. The procedure is the same, but the reason for performing it is different. According to Dr. Vijay Laxmi Misra, Medical Director at Digestive Disease Endoscopy Center, “ People do not always notice symptoms with colon cancer, which is why having a screening colonoscopy is so important.”
If you or someone you know has been postponing their screening due to financial circumstances, now is the time to reconsider. If you are age 50 or older and have commercial insurance coverage, your preventative care visits, including screening colonoscopy, could be at no cost to you.
Colonoscopy is performed under sedation, so it is associated with minimal discomfort. A prerequisite for the procedure is bowel cleansing, and techniques are becoming patient friendly. Current recommendations are to use a split bowel prep and sometimes, cleansing solutions in volumes as low as 16 ounces two times, as compared to one gallon in the past.
Another advance is carbon dioxide (CO2) insufflation. CO2 insufflation may lessen abdominal discomfort and decrease the amount of time patients spend in the recovery area since it is absorbed across the intestines approximately 150 more times faster than room air. Several studies using carbon dioxide for insufflation show a high level of patient satisfaction with the procedure, with the vast majority of patients reporting that they would be happy to go ahead with a repeat colonoscopy if necessary in the future.
The medical community encourages you to take care of your health and be your own advocate when it comes to health maintenance. Colorectal cancer is extremely preventable and screening saves lives, but only if people actually get screened! Don’t wait — call and make that appointment today.
Digestive Disease Endoscopy Center has joined the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable and other committed institutions in the “Eighty by 2018” Commitment Program reaching 80 percent screened for colorectal cancer by 2018. Digestive Disease Endoscopy Center is conveniently located at 1302 Franklin Ave. Ste. 1000 in Normal. For more information, you may visit their website www.giendo.org or phone 309-268-3400.