P.E.I. lowers age for colorectal cancer screening, other provinces weighing options

Could the Maritime provinces lower the minimum age for colorectal cancer screenings?

Prince Edward Island has lowered the screening age for colorectal cancer and pressure is building for other Maritime provinces to follow suit.

The Canadian Cancer Society is urging provinces and territories to drop the routine screening age from 50 to 45, citing growing evidence that colorectal cancer is increasingly being diagnosed in younger Canadians.

“What the evidence is telling us is that younger Canadians, particularly those under the age of 50, are two to two-and-a-half times more likely than previous generations to be diagnosed with colorectal cancer,” said Heather Mulligan, senior manager of advocacy and strategic initiatives with the Canadian Cancer Society.

Earlier this week, Prince Edward Island became the first province in Canada to offer routine colorectal screenings starting at 45.

“Waiting until 50 is no longer an option, it’s just not good enough,” said P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz.

In Nova Scotia, the provincial Liberal Party has tabled a bill that would follow P.E.I.’s lead but they aren’t sure if it’ll be picked up and passed by the majority Progressive Conservative government.

“In Atlantic Canada in general, our cancer rates are higher and so there has to be some urgency here,” said N.S. Liberal Leader Iain Rankin, adding that he doesn’t support making the program opt-in.

Premier Tim Houston told reporters only about half of at-home screening kits mailed to eligible Nova Scotians are being returned for testing. He suggested an opt-in system could improve participation and potentially create room to expand eligibility to younger Nova Scotians.

“If we change the process so people opt-in and are more likely to get it back, then maybe that might allow us to go to a younger age,” Houston said.

Both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick say they are reviewing the evidence from the Canadian Cancer Society and are assessing system capacity before making changes.

For now, routine screening in both provinces still begins at age 50.

The Cancer Society argues lowering the age is preventative medicine that could save lives and reduce long-term health-care costs down the road.

“When (cancer is) identified at those earliest stages, it’s a 90 per cent survival rate,” said Mulligan. “That drops to about 15 per cent in stage three or stage four, so time is of the essence.”