colonoscopy

A Laxative-Free, Virtual Colonoscopy? It Could Happen Soon

Posted on 05/16/2012 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Personal HealthThink of it: A virtual colonoscopy that doesn’t require a day spent taking laxatives and being sequestered in the bathroom, and doesn’t use that lovely little camera-probe inserted where the sun don’t shine. Sign me up, you might say. Yeah, well, not so fast. First, it’s still being studied. And second, it’s almost — but not quite — as accurate as the traditional colonoscopy that does require all that prep work. A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine …

Colonoscopy Cuts Death Rate By Half, New Study Shows

Posted on 02/23/2012 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Personal HealthIt’s probably your least favorite cancer test, but a new study finds that the colonoscopy dramatically cuts the death rate from colorectal cancer. A team of researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City found that the death rate from colorectal cancer was cut by 53 percent in patients who had a colonoscopy with removal of precancerous polyps, or small tumors. The evidence was based on 2,602 adults, who had polyps removed during colonoscopies from 1980 to 1990, …

Is 75 Too Old For Routine Screening Tests?

Posted on 12/19/2011 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Personal HealthIf you’re 75 or older, you don’t need routine screening for breast, colorectal and prostate cancer. If you’re a woman age 65 or older, you don’t need to be tested for cervical cancer (the Pap test or Pap smear). These are the current guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Service Task Force, but a new study finds that many older Americans are being routinely screened for these diseases — something experts say is unnecessary, costly for our health care system, and …

Are You Too Old To Be Having That Test?

Posted on 09/15/2011 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Personal HealthDo men and women over 75 still need to get colonoscopies? Does an 80-year-old woman really need a mammogram? What about a man who’s over 75 — is PSA testing for prostate disease really necessary? The answer is a resounding “no,” say a growing number of doctors and researchers.

The Cancer Screening That 22 Million of You Still Need To Get

Posted on 07/15/2011 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Personal HealthAmericans between the ages of 50 and 75 are at the highest risk for colon cancer, yet one out of three — about 22 million of you — still haven’t gotten screened for this deadly disease. Many of you have done the right thing, thanks in part to publicity about screening by some well-known TV personalities. As a result, deaths from colon cancer have greatly decreased. As for the other 22 million folks – well, federal officials at the Centers for …