Nevada health experts say colorectal cancer screening increase could save dozens a year
Increasing Nevada’s screening rates for colorectal cancer would save dozens of lives each year, health experts said Friday at an event aimed at increasing public awareness about the disease.
Presenters at the first Nevada Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, held at Roseman University’s Summerlin campus, said that increases in colonoscopies and stool testing could make a substantial impact in the Silver State, where an average of 438 people died of colorectal cancer every year between 2008 and 2012.
The roundtable, which brought together organizations including the American Cancer Society and Nevada Department of Public and Behavioral Health, discussed ways to increase public awareness of cancers that begin in the colon or rectum as well as misconceptions surrounding the illness — the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S.
Durado Brooks, the American Cancer Society’s managing director of cancer control interventions, said in the keynote address that it’s vital for public health employees, primary care physicians and others to encourage people over 50 to pursue colorectal cancer screenings.
“Just because they don’t have anyone in the family with colorectal cancer doesn’t mean they’re not at risk,” Brooks said.
Screenings can provide early detection of pre-cancerous polyps, which can be removed, effectively preventing many cases, according to the American Cancer Society.
Contact Pashtana Usufzy at pusufzy@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4563. Follow @pashtana_u on Twitter.
