With the increasing expense of treating colorectal cancer, treatment cost savings in the near future will more than double when screening prevents colon and rectal cancers or finds them early.

Looking at expense for an entire population, all screening methods except colonoscopy cost less than treating those cancers that developed, and the net cost of colonoscopy screening fell from over $1,300 to less than $300 per individual in the population. Read the rest of this entry »

The Centers for Disease Control has awarded $22 million to 26 states and tribal organizations to provide colorectal cancer screening to the uninsured and underinsured from age 50 to 64.

Through the Colorectal Cancer Control Program, five-year grants ranging from $358,283 to $1.1 million will support support screening and diagnostic follow–up care, data collection, outreach and public education, health care provider education, and program evaluation.  Projects can choose from among recommended screening methods including colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, or stool tests.

The new funding builds on the successful CDC Colorectal Cancer Screening Demonstration Program in five sites across the US, including Baltimore, Long Island, Seattle and King County, Nebraska, and Missouri. Read the rest of this entry »