None-evasive colorectal cancer test with in the year

A new, none-evasive, screening test for colorectal cancer, that patients do not fear and avoid, seems to be getting close.

In a preliminary trial, the new test was able to find 64% of pre-cancerous polyps and 85% of full-blown cancers said, David Ahlquist, a Mayo Clinic researcher who invented part of the technology.

The test that has been named the Cologuard DNA test finds specific altered DNA in cells shed by pre-cancerous or cancerous polyps, and which are to be found in the patient’s stool.

While colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for men and women in the United States, Most adults do not have the screenings once they reach age 50 (or earlier for those with a family history), Ahlquist told a news conference.

This new test could be an crucial component to colorectal cancer screening if it proves to be a successful study. However, these results must be repeated in a more comprehensive study.

Every year, the United States spends $14 billion on treating a 150,000 new cases of colorectal cancer, with the dream being to eradicate colon cancer altogether, which a only a test for detecting not only cancer, but pre-cancer can make come true.

Colorectal tumors grow in the lining of the colon and in the rectum. As fecal matter passed through the tract, it collects some cells from these growths. The test can find even tiny levels of altered DNA from these growths in a stool sample.

The company behind this new test, Exact Sciences, says that it does not want its product to replace the colonoscopy, a procedure that involves an invasive tube, however said that with only 40% of patients over the age of 50 in the United States. On a regular basis getting colonoscopies, a more accessible test may help doctors find patients that need to go for the procedure.