Study: Colonoscopies only reduce the risk of dying of colorectal cancer by as much as 50%

The study found that colonoscopies only reduce the risk of dying of colorectal cancer by as much as 50%. That only applies to people who actually get the scan.

News 12 Staff

Oct 10, 2022, 9:36 AM

Updated 803 days ago

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A landmark study suggests the benefits of colonoscopies for cancer screening may be overestimated.
The study found that colonoscopies only reduce the risk of dying of colorectal cancer by as much as 50%. That only applies to people who actually get the scan.
The study published in the New England Journal of Medicine looked at 84,000 European patients.
Those who agreed to undergo colonoscopy reduced their risk by 31% compared to those who were not screened.
Other experts say that as good as this study was, it has important limitations and these results shouldn't deter people from getting colonoscopies.