Study shows benefits of repeating sigmoidoscopy

Healthcare Purchasing News, Sept, 2003

According to findings published in the July 2 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), repeating flexible sigmoidoscopy three years after a negative exam can detect advanced adenomas (pre-cancerous polyps or growths in the lining of the large intestine) and distal colon cancer, raising concern about the impact of delaying repeat screening for prolonged intervals.

"Our study found a three- to four-fold increase in detection from the initial exam compared to the next exam three years later. The findings at three years, although modest, indicate that more frequent screening for colon cancer, by detecting pro-cancerous growths, could have an impact on mortality from this disease," said Robert Schoen, M.D., M.P.H, lead author of the study and associate professor of medicine and epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.