Colorectal (large intestine) cancer is one of the major cause of cancer death.
It is important to have the examinations to find a colorectal cancer at an early stage to keep your quality of life.
There are 2 common examinations for colorectal cancer; fecal occult blood tests and colonoscopies.
Fecal occult blood test is easy to have. You just collect stool samples using a kit, and submit it to the clinic. It is good as mass screening, but not a perfect test because sometimes there are false results.
On the other hand, colonoscopy is a bit bothering for you because you need a preparation from on the day before screening such as medication and fast.
However you can have clearer result than the other test and also it is good at finding a small abnormalities in your colon and rectum.
If you become over 50 years old, I recommend you to have a colonoscopy at least once.
Cancer is not a lethal disease anymore if you find it in an early stage. So please don’t be afraid to have the exam get to know your current condition better.
[by Akiko]