The day after tomorrow marks the day of colorectal cancer, the second cause of death from cancer only behind lung cancer, according to the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC) and in which early detection is one of the factors that manages to increase its survival. Screening from the age of 50 is a way to prevent this disease, although in Cáceres there is still a long way to go in terms of awareness.
Over the past year, only 41% of the population of the Cáceres Health Area to which the SES sent a letter to participate in the colorectal cancer prevention program (PDPCCR) responded to this call. Six out of 10 did not. The total number of people who underwent the stool blood test is 37%. This is a program for the medium-risk population without a family history or diseases that predispose to this cancer. The difference between the two figures (between those who attend the appointment and those who take the test) is due to the fact that if in the interview with the patient it is detected that the person does not comply with that protocol, another diagnostic route must be followed.
This program has been implemented in the autonomous community since 2016, two years after it began in the rest of Spain. Its implementation has also been progressive, in stages to cover the range between 50 and 69 years. So far two rounds of screening have been carried out. The first, aimed at the medium-risk population between the ages of 60 and 64, was carried out from June 2016 to April 2019 and had a target population of 67,613 in the region. In this first round in the Health Area of Cáceres, 39.98% attended the call and 35.50% took the stool blood test. The second round of screening covers ages 55-69, started in May 2019, ended in December 2021, and was delayed due to the bottleneck caused by the pandemic. In this case, the total target population was 184,000 people.
Last January, the third round began for people between 50 and 69 years old, which will run until December 31, 2023. 256,500 people are called. The tests are carried out every two years.
Delay
Ignacio Lucero is the manager of the AECC of Cáceres. In the campaign that will take place the day after tomorrow, they will insist on the importance of going to the health center when they receive the letter that summons them. “It is a test that nobody talks about, but it saves lives.” Lucero indicates that the delay in starting these tests in general means that the population is not yet aware. “Until it is 100% implanted in the entire target population, the word of mouth effect will not occur, as is the case, for example, with breast cancer screening,” says the expert.
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