Colonoscopy Access Program (CAP)
GUTRUNNERS™ Foundation announces new funding for the Colonoscopy Access Program (CAP) at the ASGE Crystal Awards dinner on Sunday May 8th, 2011.The program works on a simple voucher system with an assigned value of $500 per colonoscopy. Any participating member of the ASGE Endoscopic Unit Recognition Program may apply for a grant from GUTRUNNERS™ Foundation to offset the cost of providing free colonoscopy to uninsured patients in their practice. The grantee must provide proof of lack of insurance and inability to pay for the procedure on behalf of the patient and must also provide a valid indication for the colonoscopy. Patients with a high suspicion for colon cancer will be given priority. Once the procedure is completed the grantee will receive a check in the amount of $500 per procedure from GUTRUNNERS™ Foundation. Participating physicians and their endoscopy units will be recognized on the GUTRUNNERS™ website.
GUTRUNNERS™ Foundation is delighted to be able to launch this program, and to start providing health care for the less fortunate. We are honored to have the ASGE as our founding sponsor. Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men and women in the United States. Five hundred dollars could save a life!
D.C. residents urged to take advantage of cancer screening program
Nearly 30 percent of D.C. residents who received a colon cancer screening during a six-month study were found to have a precancerous lesion, a rate higher than the national average. Yet only a few residents took advantage of the free screening, prompting physicians to step up promotion of the program.
The Washington Post / March 21, 2011
Group Releases New Colorectal Cancer Data, Screening Guide.
Medscape reported that most colorectal cancer "could be prevented by applying existing knowledge about cancer prevention and by increasing the use of established screening tests," according to a new report released by the American Cancer Society (ACS). In the "Colorectal Cancer Facts & Figures 2011-2013," which was released to coincide with National Colon Cancer Awareness Month, the ACS recommends "colorectal cancer screening for people 50 years and older." The group also encourages "physicians to proactively recommend regular screening," and highlights its online resource, entitled "How to Increase Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates in Practice: A Primary Care Clinician's Evidence-Based Toolbox and Guide."
Medscape (3/10, Chusteck)
Colonoscopy With Polypectomy May Significantly Reduce CRC Risk.
MedWire reports that "colonoscopy with polypectomy is associated with a strongly reduced risk for developing colorectal cancer (CRC)," according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The researchers assessed links between "previous colonoscopy and risk for developing CRC in 1,688 patients with CRC and 1,932 controls" and found that patients who had "undergone colonoscopy" in the previous 10 years were "77-percent less likely to develop CRC than those who had not." When the team divided the risks by "type of CRC, colonoscopy in the previous 10 years reduced the risks for any, right-sided, and left-sided CRC by 77 percent, 56 percent, and 84 percent," respectively.
MedWire (1/19, Albert)
Fear May Keep Many Americans From Undergoing Colonoscopy At Recommended Age.
"Many Americans over the age of 50 ignore expert recommendations that they undergo a colonoscopy to screen for colorectal cancer," according to survey results released by the Colon Cancer Alliance. The survey, conducted last fall and involving "nearly 1,700 people," found that 70 percent of the respondents "in the age group recommended to get screened admitted that they hadn't done so primarily because of fear of the procedure."
HealthDay (1/18, Mozes)
Colonoscopy May Be Associated With Substantial Protection Against CRC On Both Sides Of The Colon.
"Healthland" blog reported that "despite the fact that nearly every health organization recommends that people over age 50 screen for colon cancer, recent studies have questioned how effective colonoscopy is in detecting pre-cancerous lesions, especially when compared to less expensive, and less invasive options such as testing fecal material, using a flexible sigmoidoscope, or even a virtual colonoscopy." For example, "while the National Polyp Study, conducted in the US in 1993, found anywhere from a 76% to 90% reduction in colon cancer risk among those who were screened with colonoscopy, studies in Canada and Germany found only a 30% to 50% reduction in risk. These studies also documented no risk reduction from detecting tumors in the right side of colon."
Now, however, new research "offers strong evidence that the test can prevent colorectal cancers located throughout the colon -- not just those easiest to reach with the fiberoptic imaging scope," WebMD (1/3, Boyles) reported. In other words, "'this study tells us that when done well, colonoscopy is effective in both the left and right side of the colon,' Fox Chase Cancer Center director of gastroenterology David S. Weinberg, MD, tells WebMD."
During the study, scientists at the German Cancer Research Center looked at the "medical records of 1,688 German patients aged 50 and over with colorectal cancer and 1,932 without," HealthDay (1/3, Gardner) reported. They noted that "1,023 study participants had had at least one colonoscopy in the previous 10 years," MedPage Today (1/3, Smith) reported. "Of those, 793 were controls and 230 were cases -- 41.1% and 13.6% of the groups, respectively." In short, "the procedure was associated with a 77% reduction in the overall risk of malignancy," the paper in the Annals of Internal Medicine revealed. "The risk was even lower for cancers on the left side of the colon -- the region more easily reached during the procedure -- but remained substantial for those on the right side."
Nevertheless, "there are several questions and issues that remain," according to Medscape (1/3, Chustecka). "Colonoscopy is operator dependent, and there is consistent evidence that gastroenterologists, as opposed to practitioners from other backgrounds, miss fewer lesions, Dr. Weinberg notes. There is also research showing that the ability to detect polyps and other lesions depends on the quality of the laxative preparation, he explains." What's more, "colonoscopy is more expensive and carries a higher risk than other CRC screening methods, so there are appropriate concerns about its 'value,' he writes."
The Time (1/3, Park)