Kris Koehler, right, chats with state Rep. Jennifer Parenti, left, in her office at the Colorado Capitol in Denver on March 13, 2024. As members of the local American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Koehler and a small group of fellow volunteers spent the day at the Capitol in hopes of convincing lawmakers to support SB 124, which would require insurance coverage for biomarker testing.
Colorectal cancer was the top cause of cancer death for people under 55 in Colorado, killing 88 people in that age group in 2023, followed by brain cancers and breast cancer, according to provisional data. Deaths from breast cancer have fallen since the start of the millennium, while deaths from brain cancers, which have no screening option, have bounced around over the years.
Delayed detection during the pandemic could be a factor in some cases, but until 2021, the guidelines recommended that most people not start screening until they turned 50, meaning a significant number of those who died wouldn’t have been eligible even without disruptions to health care. People who are below the screening age are more likely to be diagnosed only after they develop symptoms, such as blood in their stool; significant changes in bowel habits; abdominal pain; or unexplained weight loss. Most of the time, people with those symptoms don’t have colorectal cancer, but they should see a doctor to be sure, even if they’re relatively young, Lieu said.
Researchers are still working out how diet influences risk, but the leading theory is that disruptions to the bacteria and other microbes in the intestines increase inflammation, Lieu said. When tissue has high inflammation, cells divide faster, creating more chances for mutations and cancers.
Source: Healthcare Press (healthcarepress.net)
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: truthout - 🏆 69. / 68 Read more »
Source: peoplestyle - 🏆 367. / 59 Read more »
Source: Medscape - 🏆 386. / 55 Read more »
Source: nbcsandiego - 🏆 524. / 51 Read more »
Source: RobbReport - 🏆 309. / 63 Read more »
Source: BreitbartNews - 🏆 610. / 51 Read more »