As reported in the 2007 Cancer Fact & Figures, the incidence of colorectal cancer has been decreasing steadily for the past 20 years. Yet, it still is the third most common cancer—behind prostate cancer and lung cancer in men, and breast cancer and lung cancer in women. Why? The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that only 50 percent of East Tennesseans receive early detection of colon cancer.

The best screening tool to detect colon cancer is a colonoscopy. Early detection of colorectal cancer by means of colonoscopy enables physicians to remove polyps before they develop into cancer. Colorectal cancer is 90 percent preventable if caught early.

March is Colorectal Awareness Month. The UT Medical Center Cancer Institute and University Gastroenterology encourage men and women 50 years of age and older (earlier, if you have a positive family history) to schedule your screening colonoscopy.

Click here for the Colorectal Cancer Screening and Family History risk assessment. [PDF]

Tommy and Rita Musick, a couple from Morristown, Tenn., know the importance of a colonoscopy. They had talked about getting a colonoscopy for years and then both received them in the same week. Both were diagnosed with colon cancer, and they had surgery to remove the cancerous polyps on the same day….

Click here to read their full colon cancer story at WATE.