March 18, 2014

Colon Cancer Deaths Decline

From MedPageToday.com

Colon Cancer Deaths Decline
Published: Mar 17, 2014

By Charles Bankhead, Staff Writer, MedPage Today

The incidence of colon cancer in older adults decreased by 30% in the last decade, coinciding with a tripling of the colonoscopy rate, the American Cancer Society (ACS) reported.

Overall, the incidence of the third most common cancer decreased by 3.4% annually from 2001 to 2010. However, the benefit was driven by a 3.9% annualized decline in people ≥50, which was offset to some extent by a 1.1% annual increase in younger people. Colon cancer mortality decreased by a similar rate during the same time frame, reported Rebecca Siegel, MPH, and colleagues, all from the ACS in Atlanta.

Much of the credit for the lower incidence of colorectal cancer goes to improved uptake of colonoscopy among people ages 50 to 75, which rose from 19% in 2000 to 55% in 2010, they wrote in the March/April issue ofCA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

"Among adults aged 50 years and older, the rate of decline has surged, particularly among those aged 65 years and older, among whom the annual percent decline in distal tumors accelerated from 5.2% during 2001 to 2008 to 9.5% during 2008 to 2010," they said.

"Larger declines among Medicare-eligible seniors likely reflect higher rates of screening because of universal insurance coverage," they added. "In 2010, 55% of adults aged 50 to 64 years reported having undergone a recent colorectal cancer screening test, compared with 64% of those age 65 years and older."

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