Colon Cancer Screening Laws Now Cover Half of U.S. ...(ate of 90 percent. That survival ratedro...)

Date:3/11/2008

ate of 90 percent. That survival rate drops to only 10 percent when people are diagnosed with the most advanced stage of the disease (once it has spread from the colon to other organs such as the liver and lungs). Early detection and prevention through screening is extraordinarily cost effective.

Screening is Cost Effective

A study commissioned by the American Cancer Society in 2003 shows that colon cancer screening tests are less costly than equally-important annual screening for breast cancer, for which coverage is protected by law in 49 states. The PMPM cost of screening mammography is 75 cents -- 9 cents more PMPM than flexible sigmoidoscopy and FOBT combined and 20 cents more than colonoscopy.([2])

Early detection also produces overall savings in health care expenditures by reducing treatment costs. A recent report commissioned by ACG estimated average per patient treatment costs of $30,000 when early stage cancers are detected early, compared to $120,000 for a patient with late-stage colon cancer.

While screening is cost-effective on an aggregate basis, the out-of-pocket costs can strain the finances of uninsured and underinsured individuals and discourage them from taking advantage of screening technology. Medical practitioners recommend regular screening for colon cancer once individuals reach the age of 50, but in 2003, fewer than one half of Americans in this group reported getting screened regularly. By comparison, data from that year shows that more than 57 percent of men over 50 reported being screened for prostate cancer in the last year, and 69.7 percent of women over 40 reported being screened for breast cancer within the past two years.

Studies have shown that limits on covered benefits impede an individual's ability to benefit from early detection of or screening for cancer, in particular colorectal cancer.([3],[4]) The less extensive the coverage, the less likely a person is to get screened. Furthermore, doctors
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SOURCE Colorectal Cancer Legislation Report Card Copyright©2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

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