Stool Fecal Immunochemical Testing (FIT) similar to colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening
February 24, 2012 | by Ralph Zanfardino, MPAS, BSJ, PA-C
Stool Fecal Immunochemical Testing (FIT) seems similar in its ability to screen for colorectal cancer when compared to colonoscopy.
A study posted in The New England Journal of Medicine compared 10-year death rates among 26,703 people who had a one-time colonoscopy with 26,599 people who had FIT performed every 2 years, all between the ages 50 and 69. FIT is a stool test that checks specifically for human blood products-- unlike Fecal Occult Blood Tests that cannot distinguish human from food source blood in stool.
Participation was higher in the FIT group than in the colonoscopy group. Colorectal cancer was found in 0.1% of both the FIT group and the colonoscopy group. Adenomas, a specific subtype of colon cancer, were detected more often in the colonoscopy group, however.
