New stool tests are better at detecting colon cancer.
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The American Cancer Society is adding three new colon cancer screening tests to its recommendations.The move is designed to get more people tested more regularly as rates of young people diagnosed with colorectal cancer tick up."People should be getting screening as soon as they are eligible," epidemiologist Robert Smith, senior vice president of early cancer detection science at the American Cancer Society, told Business Insider, shortly before the new recommendations were announced on Wednesday. "We always say the best test is the one you get."Everybody aged 45 to 75 should be getting regular colon cancer screenings, according to both ACS and federal guidelines. But recent survey data show that less than half of US adults aged 45 to 49 have completed their routine colon cancer screenings, even as young colorectal cancer cases are on the rise.Colonoscopies remain the best option because a doctor can examine and remove any suspicious tissue in a single procedure. But people sometimes skip them because they require prep (cleaning out the colon with laxatives), sedation, and recovery time. Plus, doctors' offices can be booked weeks or months in advance, making scheduling challenging.Until today, the ACS has endorsed colonoscopy and some more rudimentary stool tests. Now, the organization has given its blessing to three new, higher-tech tests: a blood test and two more sensitive at-home stool tests. Not all of these options are equally effective, though.Stool tests are a tried-and-true alternative to visual exams at a doctor's office