Screening for Colorectal Neoplasms

  • Thomas E. Read
  • Philip F. Caushaj
Reference work entry

Abstract

Cancer of the colon and rectum is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. In 1997, it was estimated that 131,000 Americans were diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and 55,000 died from this disease. Without undergoing screening or preventive action, approximately 1 in every 17 people in this country will develop colorectal cancer at some point in life. However, evidence is mounting that colorectal adenocarcinoma can be prevented by detecting and removing adenomatous polyps, and that detecting early-stage cancers reduces mortality from the disease. Both polyps and early-stage cancers are usually asymptomatic; cancers that have grown large enough to cause symptoms have a much worse prognosis. This contrast highlights the need for screening in asymptomatic persons.

Keywords

Colorectal Cancer Familial Adenomatous Polyposis Fecal Occult Blood Test Adenomatous Polyp Colorectal Cancer Screening 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2007

Authors and Affiliations

  • Thomas E. Read
  • Philip F. Caushaj

There are no affiliations available

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