“The month of March is devoted to trying to raise awareness about colorectal cancer,” says Dr. Raman Muthusamy, director of endoscopy for UCLA Health. “Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in this country. We have made some inroads over the past two decades but, unfortunately, a sizeable percentage of the population is still not getting screened. We probably screen in the 60% range of eligible patients, which means nearly four in ten patients are not getting screened. There are a variety of tests, so if a patient is hesitant to do a colonoscopy, there are less invasive screening tests that can be used. Patients should talk to their doctor about what option is best for them and get screened.”
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