Should adults age 50 to 75 who are at average risk and show no symptoms of colorectal cancer have regular colorectal screening exams? Last month, a major medical journal came out against regular screening. But just a few weeks later, the powerful and influential American College of Physicians (ACP) issued New Guidance in favor of regular screening, the same position taken by the American Cancer Society (ACS) a year earlier. Here is a rundown of the ACP’s recommendations. To Screen or Not To Screen Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in U.S. adults. After declining overall from 1970 to 2004, colorectal cancer death rates among 20- to 54-year-old adults climbed by 1% annually from 2004 to 2014, according to a 2017 study published in the medical journal JAMA. In May 2018, the ACS issued guidance recommending that average-risk adults start regular screening at age 45, diverging from the previous consensus recommendations that screening begin at age 50. Adding to the debate, in early October 2019, The BMJ issued guidelines recommending against colorectal cancer screening in healthy people aged 50 to 79 who are at low risk for the disease, citing a lack of evidence that the practice benefits this […]