Nearly 60 million individuals aged 45 to 85 years are eligible for CRC screening in the US
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Key takeaways:
- Of 134.8 million individuals aged 45 to 85 years, the estimated screening-eligible population was 57.1 to 59.6 million.
- Of those aged 45 to 75 years, the screening-eligible population was 52.6 to 54.9 million.
Researchers estimated that nearly 60 million individuals aged 45 to 85 years are at average-risk for colorectal cancer and eligible for screening in the U.S., according to cross-sectional study data in JAMA Network Open.
“Over the last decade, there have been a number of significant advancements and changes surrounding colorectal cancer screening,” Derek W. Ebner, MD, of the division of gastroenterology and hepatology at the Mayo Clinic, told Healio. “This included the availability of an additional stool-based strategy for screening — a multitarget stool DNA test — and the expansion of age eligibility to enter screening at 45. Although prior estimates of eligible average-risk individuals reflected these updates, they did not account for the recommended selective screening among those aged 76 to 85 and did not account for the need of rescreening.”
He added, “Realizing that health policy decision-making and the allocation of health care resources is dependent upon accurate estimates, our group strived to determine the most accurate estimate of eligible average-risk individuals for colorectal cancer screening based on current guidelines.”
In a cross-sectional study, Ebner and colleagues used 2022 U.S. Census estimates to calculate the total population aged 45 to 85 years at average risk for CRC and eligible for screening. They also conducted a secondary analysis for those aged 45 to 75 years.
Among 134.8 million individuals aged 45 to 85 years, 86.9% were estimated to be at average risk for CRC. Of those, 59.3% to 61.8% were up to date on screening, leaving 44.7 to 47.7 million individuals eligible for screening. The final estimated screening-eligible population was 57.1 to 59.6 million, after including those eligible for rescreening within the next year.
The secondary analysis, which included 119.3 million people aged 45 to 75 years, estimated a final screening-eligible population of 52.6 to 54.9 million individuals.
“Our findings highlight that there is a staggering number of individuals that are eligible for colorectal cancer screening through a range of effective modalities such as colonoscopy, FIT and a multitarget stool DNA test, known as Cologuard,” Ebner said. “We hope our estimates can support policy makers and health care stakeholders to advance initiatives surrounding colorectal cancer screening to prevent this disease or identify it earlier when more can be done to treat it.”
He continued: “Although colonoscopy remains the most utilized resource for screening in the United States, it is unlikely that utilization of colonoscopy alone will overcome the deficit in screening. Research addressing strategies for patient adherence to screening is critical, as well as evaluating the economic impact of various screening strategies.”
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