Month: August 2014

People who have low-risk colon polyps removed may have a lower-than-average risk of future colon cancer, a new study suggests. But those who have high-risk polyps removed may still have a higher risk. The study was done in Norway. It was based on data for nearly 41,000 people. They had colorectal polyps called adenomas removed during a colonoscopy. This test uses an instrument to look inside the colon for cancer. Adenomas are removed because they sometimes become cancerous. The study group was divided into low-risk and high-risk groups. The low-risk group had a single polyp smaller than 1 centimeter removed. During about 8 years of follow-up, people in this group were 25% less likely to die of colon cancer than someone in the general population. People in the high-risk group had large or multiple polyps removed.