Getting screened early can save your life, which is the message of the national colon cancer awareness campaign, Blue Mars, which has just started.
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In these days when we only talk about protecting ourselves from the coronavirus, we would almost forget about other dangers like colon cancer. The Blue Mars mobilization campaign, which has just started and which will take place throughout the month of March, aims to inform the public, and in particular people aged 50 to 74, on how to prevent and to detect colon cancer at an early stage.
Free screening every two years
Since almost 95% of colorectal cancers are diagnosed after the age of 50, in both men and women, all French women are invited, as soon as they are 50, to be tested for free. To do this, they must consult their doctor in order to withdraw a screening test which they can then easily carry out at home. It consists of taking a sample of his stool and then sending it to an analysis laboratory. There is no cost for the patient to advance: the kit is free and the test analysis is automatically covered 100% by Health Insurance.
If traces of blood are detected, a colonoscopy is then performed to detect the presence of possible cancerous lesions, “Even avoid cancer by highlighting polyps or adenomas, before they degenerate into cancerous lesions”, says Health Insurance.
Detecting cancer at an early stage
The sooner cancer of the colon or rectum is detected, the greater the chances of recovery. The treatment will also be lighter. Colorectal cancer is cured in 90% of cases when diagnosed at an early stage, hammer health authorities for several years. However, only 32.1% of the people concerned participated in the screening organized between 2017 and 2018. In France, in men as in women, it still causes 17,000 deaths each year. With more than 43,000 new cases (20,000 women and 23,000 men) per year, colorectal cancer is the most common cancer in men after prostate and lung cancer, and in women after breast cancer.
Mars Bleu is an opportunity to inform the general public through various events organized almost everywhere in France by Health Insurance, Regional Health Agencies (ARS), the League against Cancer, the National Cancer Institute ( Inca), etc. Exhibition stands in health facilities, giant colon facilities in public places, conferences, giant posters … will be set up throughout the month of March.
The essential preventive actions are also recalled: eating a diet rich in fiber, limiting alcohol consumption, not smoking, playing sports, etc.
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