NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JUNE 6, 2012
Contact: Ali Wimer (267.295.3859 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
Data Findings Reveal High Number of Adults Forego Regular Cancer Screenings
PHILADELPHIA – On June 3, communities across the nation marked the 25th observance of National Cancer Survivors Day. The event celebrates those currently living with a cancer diagnosis and cancer survivors. Now, more than ever, there is reason to celebrate. A 2011 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Cancer Institute found the number of Americans who are cancer survivors continues to rise. In 1971, there were 3.0 million cancer survivors, in 2001, 9.8 million survivors and in 2007, 11.7 million survivors[1]. According to the American Cancer Society, for cancers such as colorectal cancer, the number of people diagnosed with and who have died from this disease has been decreasing over the past 20 years[2]. But new data findings reveal a high percentage of adults in Southeastern Pennsylvania have not had the regular, life-saving screenings for colorectal cancer.
To commemorate National Cancer Survivors Day, Public Health Management Corporation’s Community Health Data Base (CHDB) released data findings from its 2010 Southeastern Pennsylvania Household Health Survey focused on cancer screening among adults 55+ residing in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia County. The findings highlight adults 55+ who have never received either a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy in their lifetimes. “Colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy are two of the most commonly used diagnostic tests that can check for cancerous polyps,” says CHDB research associate Nicole Dreisbach. “Much of the decline in both the diagnosis of and death from colorectal cancer has been connected to improvements in early screening tests to detect cancerous polyps. In fact, a recent study confirmed what many people had already suspected—colonoscopies save lives.[3]”
Since it is recommended that colorectal cancer screenings should begin around the age of 50, this CHDB study examined adults 55 years of age or older because everyone in that demographic should optimally have received a colorectal cancer screening test by this age. The data show that, in Southeastern Pennsylvania, more than one in five adults ages 55 years or older (22.2%) has never had either a colonoscopy or a sigmoidoscopy to detect for colorectal cancer, representing nearly 247,200 adults in our region. The survey also found the following:
Demographic characteristics
· Women (24.2%) are more likely than men (19.9%) to have never had either a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy.
· Nearly one in three Latino adults (31.5%) has never had either screening test for colorectal cancer, compared with lower percentages for Black (22.4%) and White (21.9%) adults.
· As educational attainment increases, the percentage of adults who have never had either a colonoscopy or a sigmoidoscopy decreases; that is, 32.9% of adults with less than a high school education, 27.5% of adults with a high school education, 21.8% of adults with some college education, 18.2% of adults who have completed college, and 11.8% of adults with a post-college education have never had either a colonoscopy or a sigmoidoscopy.
· More than one in three adults living below 150% of the Federal Poverty Level (33.8%) have never had either a colonoscopy or a sigmoidoscopy, compared with one in five adults (19.8%) living at or above that poverty level[4].
· Adults who live alone (25.5%) are slightly more likely than adults who live with at least one other person (21.3%) to have never had either screening test for colorectal cancer.
Access to Care
· More than one in three adults with no regular source of healthcare (34.0%) have never received a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy compared with 21.4% of adults with a regular source of care.
· There is also some evidence to suggest that adults who have never had other cancer screening tests are more likely also to have never had either a colonoscopy or a sigmoidoscopy.
· For example, two in three women who have never had a mammogram screening for breast cancer also have never had a colorectal cancer screening (67.3%). In comparison, only 22.0% of women who have at some point had a mammogram have never had a colorectal cancer screening.
· In addition, nearly eight in ten men who have never had a prostate cancer screening also have never had a colorectal cancer screening (78.5%). In comparison, only 14.7% of men who have at some point had a prostate cancer screening have never had a colorectal cancer screening.
For more information about the findings presented in this article, please contact Nicole Dreisbach at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
About CHDB
Public Health Management Corporation’s Community Health Data Base Household Health Survey is one of the largest regional health surveys in the country. The Pew Charitable Trusts, William Penn Foundation, United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania, United Way of North Penn, CIGNA Foundation, Green Tree Community Health Foundation, Philadelphia Foundation, North Penn Community Health Foundation, the Thomas Scattergood Foundation and over 350 local agencies from the health, government, nonprofit and academic sectors help to support CHDB. To view previous data news releases, please click here. For more information, or to access key findings from previous years, please visit www.chdbdata.org.
About PHMC
Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC) is a nonprofit public health institute that creates and sustains healthier communities. PHMC uses best practices to improve community health through direct service, partnership, innovation, policy, research, technical assistance and a prepared workforce. PHMC has served the region since 1972. For more information on PHMC, visit www.phmc.org.
[1] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Cancer Survivors---United States, 2007. MMWR 2011;60(09);269-272. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6009a1.htm
[2] American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2012. Available at: http://www.cancer.org/acs/groups/content/@epidemiologysurveilance/documents/document/acspc-031941.pdf
[3] Zauber AG, Winawer SJ, O'Brien MJ, Lansdorp-Vogelaar I, van Ballegooijen M, Hankey BF, Shi W, Bond JH, Schapiro M, Panish JF, Stewart ET, Waye JD. Colonoscopic Polypectomy and Long-Term Prevention of Colorectal-Cancer Deaths. N Engl J Med 2012; 366:687-696.
[4] Poverty level is calculated based on family size and income. For example, a family of four with an annual income of less than $33,075 in 2009 was considered living below 150% of the Federal Poverty Level.
