Colonoscopy tied to lower risk of advanced cancer People who
have had a colonoscopy in the past decade are less likely to be
diagnosed with advanced colon cancer than those who haven't been
screened recently, according to a new study. Researchers found
less-invasive tests, known as sigmoidoscopies, were also tied to
a lower risk of advanced tumors - but only those growing in one
side of the colon. It's still not clear what that means for
cancer survival, according to Dr. Chyke Doubeni, who led the new
study at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of
Medicine in Philadelphia. But while researchers wait for results
from more controlled, long-term trials, the new report is more
evidence that screening in general is beneficial, they said.
"There's a variety of screening tests for us to choose from,"
Doubeni told Reuters Health. "This study doesn't show that
colonoscopy is the only test, but it does show that colonoscopy
has the advantage in being able to see the right side (of the
colon)… unlike sigmo