Study: Doctors Don’t Use Better Colon Test

Most doctors don’t properly use one screening method for colorectal cancer, a survey suggests. Researchers surveyed 1,134 primary care doctors. About 3 out of 4 doctors said they perform or order an office fecal occult blood test for patients. The others rely on just the home-based fecal occult blood test. The home test uses three stool samples. It is more accurate than the office test. About half of doctors used both tests. The fecal occult blood test looks for hidden blood in the stool. This can be a sign of colon cancer. The study was published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. HealthDays News wrote about it April 15.