In France, three cancers are currently the subject of organized screening: breast cancer, cervical cancer and colorectal cancer – a 4th Organized screening should appear in 2025, lung cancer screening. For colorectal cancer screening, it is up to the person themselves to take the sample and send the test for analysis. A decisive act of prevention in the fight against this cancer, which is respectively the second and third most common cancer in women and men.
Who is colorectal cancer screening for?
The cancer colorectal is a relatively common cancer, with 47,582 new cases recorded in 2023. Organized screening for colorectal cancer is aimed at all people, regardless of their state of health, men and women, aged 50 to 74. People with risk factors for colorectal cancer (family history, inflammatory digestive diseases, etc.) benefit from specific gastroenterological monitoring before the age of 50.
To know! Each year, the month of March is dedicated to raising awareness and providing information on colorectal cancer screening, as part of Operation Mars Bleu. But screening takes place all year round, as soon as eligible people receive their invitation letter.
This screening is aimed to people aged over 50because age is an identified risk factor for colorectal cancer. The median age at diagnosis is 71 years for men and 72 years for women. Other risk factors are known, including lifestyle factors: alcohol consumption, smoking, overweight and obesity, lack of physical activity and sedentary lifestyle.
How to get tested?
People eligible for colorectal cancer screening receive a letter directly to their home explaining the screening procedures. Screening is based on a stool collectionthen on a immunological analysis stool test which detects the presence of blood in the stool. No need to go to an analysis laboratory. To carry out the screening, you must obtain a kit, available in several ways, after completing a self-questionnaire:
This kit, completely free, includes instructions which explain how to collect stools, how to carry out the test and how to return it for analysis. A few days later, the person receives the test results. In 96% of cases, the test is negative and the person is reassured that there are no precancerous or cancerous lesions. In 4% of cases, the test is positive, blood was detected in the stools. The doctor then prescribes a colonoscopy to find the source of the bleeding.
Why get tested?
Getting tested, even when you are in good health, even in the absence of digestive signs, is essential. When colorectal cancer is detected at an early stage, it is cured in 90% of cases. The test is completely free, painless, without any risk, and is carried out at home. He is instrumental in making sure everything is going well. However, even though more than 2.5 million people are tested each year, only 34.2% of eligible people take the screening test. A figure well below public health objectives.
Thanks to therapeutic advances, the prognosis of colorectal cancer has improved in recent years, with a significant increase in net survival. But early detection plays a determining role in the prognosis of patients. Getting screened, even in the absence of suggestive signs, is an act of individual prevention which contributes to the collective fight against colorectal cancer, responsible for 17,000 deaths in France in 2021.
Sources
– Panorama of cancers. National Cancer Institute. . www.e-cancer.fr. Accessed October 14, 2024.
– Colorectal cancer screening: screening kits delivered directly to your home. . sante.gouv.fr. Accessed October 14, 2024.
– Organized screening for colorectal cancer: a simple and painless test. . www.ameli.fr. Accessed October 14, 2024.
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