Americans Being Urged to be Screened for Colorectal Cancer

Boston (HealthKnowItAll) - March is colorectal cancer awareness month and Americans are being urged to be proactive and be screened for the disease.

Colorectal cancer is one of the easiest to treat if it is caught in time, but many do not get screened for it, because of the nature of the, hemm, body part.

Colorectal cancer screening is recommended for people over the age of 50, or who have a family history of the disease.

Doctors and health advocates want people to understand, that yes everybody has a colon, meaning that colorectal cancer is a potential risk for everybody.

One of the best tests to determine if a person is at risk for colorectal cancer, is a colonoscopy.

This involves a doctor, inserting a tube into the colon.

This tube has a camera on it, which the doctor can then use to look inside the colon to look for any abnormalities.

Some abnormalities which may cause concern for a doctor reading images include, bleeding, ulcers, and small growths of tissue.

“The normal lining of the colon should look like the inside of a cheek, completely smooth. We’re looking for anything that might signal a digestive condition or early signs of cancer,” said Dr. Dale Burleson, a colorectal surgeon at Baylor Medical Center.