Colonoscopy More Effective Than the Fecal Immunochemical Test in Case-Control Study
Douglas K. Rex, MD, MASGE, reviewing Kim SY, et al. Clin Transl Gastroenterol 2021 Apr 30.
Randomized controlled trials comparing the use of colonoscopy to the fecal immunochemical test (FIT) for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening are underway.
A case-control study from Korea involved 61,221 CRC cases and 306,099 age- and sex-matched controls. Colonoscopy was associated with a 71% reduction in CRC risk, including 53% in the proximal colon and 76% in the distal colon. The reductions were slightly lower in women and older patients. The reduction in CRC risk was 74% for colonoscopy performed by gastroenterologists and 60% when performed by surgeons.
The decrease in CRC risk associated with FIT exposure was 19% for 1 FIT in the prior 10 years and 55% for 5 or more FITs.
Note to readers: At the time we reviewed this paper, its publisher noted that it was not in final form and that subsequent changes might be made.
CITATION(S)
Kim SY, Kim HS, Kim YT, et al. Colonoscopy versus fecal immunochemical test for reducing colorectal cancer risk: a population-based case-control study. Clin Transl Gastroenterol 2021;12:e00350. (https://doi.org/10.14309/ctg.0000000000000350)