Colon cancer rates falling steeply among older Americans

Date: Mar-17-2014According to a new report from the American Cancer Society, rates of colorectal

cancer - commonly called colon cancer - are decreasing steeply among older people in the US

because of increasing use of colonoscopy screening, which can detect and remove precancerous

growths.

Over the last 10 years in the US, colon cancer incidence rates have fallen by 30% among

people aged 50 and over, with the largest fall in those over 65.

Meanwhile, use of colonoscopy screening has nearly tripled among those aged 50 to 75 - from

19% in 2000 to 55% in 2010.

These were the key findings of the latest issue of Colorectal Cancer Statistics 2014, which

is due to be published in the March/April issue of CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians,

and for which a companion report is available on the Society's

website.

They are being released as part of a new initiative to push colon cancer screening rates up to 80% by 2018.

Screening detects precancerous growths and early stages of colon cancer

Colon cancer is the third most common cancer and the third leading cause of cancer death in

the US. Yet because it grows slowly from precancerous polyps - small growths on the inner lining

of the colon - there is an opportunity not available with many other cancers to prevent it by

finding and removing these growths.

Colonoscopy screening - where the colon is examined with a camera - can also detect any

cancer itself in the early stages, increasing the chance of successful treatment.

For the latest figures, the American Cancer Society researchers, led by Dr. Rebecca Siegel,

drew on incidence data collected by two national programs: a surveillance program run by the

National Cancer Institute and a program of cancer registries run by the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC).

They found that during the period of 2001 to 2010, overall rates of colon cancer incidence fell

by an average of 3.4% per year.

Among the under 50s, colon cancer rates have risen slightly year on year

However, within this average, the trends varied greatly by age. For instance, colon cancer

rates fell by 3.9% per year among those aged 50 and over, but they went up by 1.1% per year among the

under 50s.

The steady increase in colon cancer among those under 50 is mostly in cases where tumors

developed in the distal colon and the rectum, which has been linked to increases in rates of

obesity and unhealthy diets, say the report authors.

The most striking fall in colon cancer rates is among those aged 65 and over - where the

decline has accelerated from 3.6% per year up to 2008 and then plummeted to 7.2% per year.

The authors suggest the sharper fall in colon cancer rates among seniors - who become

eligible for Medicare when they turn 65 - is likely due to higher take up of screening because

of universal insurance coverage:

"In 2010, 55% of adults aged 50 to 64 years reported having undergone a recent

colorectal cancer screening test, compared with 64% of those aged 65 years and

older."

Overall deaths from colon cancer follow similar sharp decline

Rates of death from colon cancer in the past decade follow a similar sharp decline. Between

2001 and 2010, they fell by around 3% a year, compared with 2% in the 1990s.

Dr. Richard C. Wender, chief cancer control officer for the American Cancer Society,

says:

"These continuing drops in incidence and mortality show the lifesaving potential of colon

cancer screening; a potential that an estimated 23 million Americans between ages 50 and 75 are

not benefiting from because they are not up to date on screening."

"Sustaining this hopeful trend will require concrete efforts to make sure all patients,

particularly those who are economically disenfranchised, have access to screening and to the

best care available," he adds.

Medical News Today recently published an article on the risks, symptoms and importance of screening for colon

cancer. The article mentions a recent report from the CDC that says more than 20 million

eligible adults in the US have never had the recommended screening for colon cancer, putting

them at higher risk of dying from a preventable condition.

Written by Catharine Paddock PhD




View all articles written by Catharine, or follow Catharine on:




Copyright: Medical News Today

Not to be reproduced without the permission of Medical News Today.

Courtesy: Medical News Today Note: Any medical information available in this news section is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional.