Princeton, NJ Health Care Guide Articles

In the majority of cases, it is possible to prevent colon cancer. Yet, almost 50,000 people a year in the United States die from the disease, National Cancer Institute statistics show. For many of those individuals, a routine colonoscopy at the recommended age could have saved their lives–either through prevention or early detection.

You’ve likely heard it before: get a colonoscopy when you’re 50. Although that recommendation varies depending on certain personal risk factors, it remains the accepted— and extremely effective—standard of care for the prevention of colorectal cancer.

“A colonoscopy is the ‘Gold Standard’ in detecting colorectal cancer,” says Jonathan R. Sachs, MD, FACG, FACP, who is board certified in gastroenterology and internal medicine.

A colonoscopy is an endoscopic procedure performed to see inside the colon and rectum, which can detect inflamed tissue, ulcers and abnormal growths. If an abnormality is found, it can be removed immediately for inspection and pathological testing.

Dr. Sachs recommends a first colonoscopy screening for average, healthy adults who have no specific risk factors at the following ages:

45 for African Americans 
50 for non-African Americans

Follow-up colonoscopy screenings are typically recommended every 10 years. 
However, you may need to have more frequent screenings based on the results of your initial test—for example, if any polyps were found, the number and size of those polyps, and whether any are found to be a more aggressive type of cancer.

• A condition known as familial polyposis, in which large numbers of polyps may develop in an individual’s large intestines
• Hereditary colon cancer (Lynch Syndrome)
• Prior colon cancer or polyps
• Ulcerative colitis
• Crohn’s colitis (a form of Crohn’s disease)
• History of kidney transplantation

“It’s important that everyone be screened at the recommended ages. It’s a deadly cancer that can be caught in time if you take action,” Dr. Sachs says.

Colonoscopies are performed at University Medical Center at Princeton’s Endoscopy Suite and Princeton Endoscopy Center. 

For more information, or for assistance finding a Princeton HealthCare System gastroenterologist, call 1.888.PHCS4YOU (1.888.742.7496) or visitwww.princetonhcs.org.