Not Enough People Are Getting Colorectal Cancer Screens

Colorectal cancer is a leading killer of many Americans. In fact, it's a disease that kills far more people than it should. That's because it is easily treatable if caught early but Americans are not taking advantage of the availability of colon cancer screening to catch the disease in its early stages. This failure to take preventive health measures is costing people their lives. Two recent studies showed that half of the people who should be screened are failing to do so. It is recommended that people age fifty and over get a virtual colonscopy to check for signs of colon cancer. Only fifty percent of people in this category do. It's apparently not the cost of screening that is the concern. Colorectal cancer screening is covered by some insurance and is available to people on Medicare. Only one fourth of Medicare patients who qualify for the screening take advantage of the opportunity to prevent the disease. Women and people of certain ethnicities are more likely to avoid colon cancer screening than their white male counterparts. Question of the Day: Why are people not getting colorectal cancer screening?