Adults should start screening for colorectal cancer at age 45

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recent draft recommendation statement proposed that "Adults should start screening for colorectal cancer routinely at age of 45 to 75, instead of waiting until 50 in a move that reflected the sharp rise of the number of colon and rectal cancers in young adults.

Though the vast majority of colorectal cancers are still found in the those of 50 and older, 12 percent of the 147,950 colorectal cancers that will be diagnosed this year, approximately 18,000 cases, will be found in adults under the age of 50.

The American Cancer Society in a statement issued in 2018 recommended starting at 45, after researchers found a sharp rise of the disease among young adults as young as in their 20s and 30s, including a sharp rise in rectal cancers.

The proposal by the USPSTF still must be finalised.   Its guidance on screenings and preventive care services is followed by doctors, insurance companies and policymakers.  

USPSTF breast cancer screening guidelines

The United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued new guidelines for when and how often women should be screened for breast cancer.

The USPSTF recommends biennial screening mammography for women 50-74 years.  Women of average risk between the ages of 40 and 49 should make an individual choice about whether to initiate screening every other year.  The UUPSTF recommends against teaching self-breast examination.

       

The USPSTF’s recommendations are similar to those issued recently by the American Cancer Society.  ACR recommends initiation of annual screening at age 45 and transition to biennial at age 55 as long as a woman has life expectancy of 10 years or longer.