[Screening for colorectal cancer--does it help?]

During the last decade, evidence from retrospective as well as prospective case-control studies suggest that screening for colorectal cancer in average-risk persons above 50 years of age may be worthwhile. Screening with proctoscopy may reduce the mortality from rectal cancer and screening with fecal occult blood tests (Hemoccult-II) may reduce the mortality from colorectal cancer. Final results from ongoing population studies will appear within a few years and there are reasons to believe that mortality for colorectal cancer may be reduced with at least 30 per cent by a combination of Hemoccult-II and flexible 60 cm sigmoidoscopy.