In Slovakia, colorectal cancer is the most common cancer. This was pointed out by the Patient Organization League Against Cancer (LPR) in connection with March – Moon awareness of colon and rectum cancer. She recalled that early detention of the disease is important. It appeals to the public to be interested in her health and use the available screening options.
“The high proportion of late diagnosed cases is often due to people do not pay enough attention to preventive examinations,” said LPR director Eva Kováčová. She recalled that one of the forms of diagnostics is a hidden stool bleeding test (TOKS), which is part of a preventive examination with a general practitioner every two years. As the LPR said, the test is performed according to the attached instructions in the comfort of the home, it is absolutely painless.
The organization has explained that another option is the primary screening colonoscopy, which can identify and remove the pre -base polyps before turning them into a malignant tumor. The target group of both screening methods are persons aged 50 to 75 years.
LPR made it that more than 430,000 people used the screening test in 2023, with 8.59 percent of a positive result. Screening colonoscopy was performed in almost 14,000 people. “Every captured case at an early stage increases the chances of successful treatment and a return to a full life,“stressed Kováčová.
The league said that more than half a million cases of colon cancer are diagnosed every year in Europe. They made it clear that almost half of the cases are detected only in advanced stages when treatment is more demanding and the chances of cure below.
