EDITORIAL: Don’t put off colorectal cancer screening

March is over, but the need to be aware of the dangers of colorectal cancer didn’t end with the changing of the calendar.

Too often, the focus on a health concern or other important issue tends to get segmented into an allotted time period, whether it’s a day, week or month. We sometimes think that once the prescribed focus period has passed, we shouldn’t dwell on the issue until it rolls around again.

That can be fatal thinking, especially when the subject is a health issue. If you, for instance, resisted the idea of having or scheduling a colonoscopy when it was a focus of attention, you might not think about it again until next March when Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month returns.

The fact is, if you have risk factors or are 50 years old, you should have a colorectal screening test. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — and prevention is what this screening can help effect — notes that the tests help find abnormal growths known as polyps that can become cancerous. By removing the precancerous polyps, colorectal cancer can be prevented.

If a polyp has become cancerous, the test is even more critical. Effective treatment is most effective when this cancer is found in an early stage.

None of this is news. Most of us are well aware of the danger of colorectal cancer. But for some, the idea of a colonoscopy — and preparation for it — is unpleasant or a bother. The CDC says that a third of Americans who have reached their 50th birthday — about 22 million men and women — have not had the recommended screening.

That’s important with both men and women, but the danger is more pronounced for men. The CDC has statistics that show a 50-year-old man has a 1.8 percent chance of developing colorectal cancer over a 20-year interval, and a 3.27 percent chance by the time he reaches 80. A 50-year-old woman’s odds are a little better — 1.33 percent over 20 years and 2.59 percent over 30. In Georgia in 2012, there were 41.5 cases per 100,000 people, and 14.9 deaths out of 100,000.

The numbers have improved, but they can be better. Many colorectal cancer cases can be prevented or treated effectively simply by being addressed early. Two cases out of 100 50-year-old men might not seem like a big deal, but it is if you’re one of the two.

If you’ve been putting off a screening, talk to your doctor about it. Better yet, talk to someone you know who’s had one. Let him or her explain what the real experience is compared what you’re imagining. They’ll tell you the screening is worth it, whether improving your chance of a long, healthy life or simply providing you with peace of mind.

— The Albany Herald Editorial Board