Even if a patient had a previous clear colonoscopy or all polyps seen on that exam were removed, a new positive fecal occult blood test (FOBT) calls for a repeat colonoscopy.

After 21,600 clear colonoscopies done at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Phoenix, 57 patients needed a second colonoscopy after they had a positive FOBT for blood in their stool. Of those one-third (19) had a newly discovered adenomatous polyp and 3 had colon or rectal cancer.  One in four of the new adenomas were advanced. Read the rest of this entry »

You can download and listen to Surviving and Thriving: Life with Cancer, six podcasts developed by CR Magazine and The Wellness Community.

Podcasts include the voices and stories of many survivors, well as information from health professionals. Read the rest of this entry »

When researchers reviewed medical records for Medicaid-insured people over 50, they found that only about half had colorectal cancer screening recommended to them by their doctors.  But only 28 percent actually received screening.

Having an on-going relationship with a doctor (medical home) made a difference.  People who had been seeing their primary care doctor for more than five years were two and a half times more likely to have been screened. Read the rest of this entry »

Twelve percent of people with advanced colorectal cancer spent more than $25,000 of their own money for cancer treatment, according to a new survey done by Thomson Reuters.

The study also found that one in eight late-stage cancer patients had turned down recommended treatment because of costs.  Among patients with incomes less than $40,000 a year, one in four didn’t go ahead with care due to its expense. Read the rest of this entry »

Are we making progress in treating colon and pancreatic cancer?  An audio webcast with Dr. David Mahvi, surgeon at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, will help answer that question.

• Treatment of Colon Cancer and Pancreatic Cancer: Are We Making Progress?
• David Mahvi, M.D.
• Tuesday, October 14, 2008.
• 7 p.m.
• Northwestern Memorial webcasts Read the rest of this entry »