Mission-driven. That’s how’s I define myself. In my profession, my social life and in my house. Articulate and prioritize the missions. Forge the paths to accomplish them.
Often though, I treated preventive health care as an obstacle, rather than its own mission. At 53 years old and on the winning side of a battle with cancer, one of my new missions is to tell you why that’s a mistake.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a cancer in which the outcome is almost completely determined by when you find out you have it. If caught early, it has up to a 91% five-year survival rate. However, if allowed to advance unnoticed and untreated, rates drop as low as 13% (meaning that late-stage diagnosis is deadly 87% of the time). So far, I’m one of the lucky ones.
The key to combatting this epidemic is early and consistent screening. But with nearly 37% of at-risk Pennsylvanians behind on recommended CRC testing, we clearly have some work to do.
People tend to put off CRC screening because one, they’re busy, and two, traditional screening methods for CRC, particularly colonoscopies, are uncomfortable and invasive and require you to take time off work. Especially if you don’t feel sick, this can seem like a big lift. But when you’re talking about a cancer for which early detection is a matter of life and death, you can’t afford to be too busy for screening.
Luckily, medical innovation never takes a day off. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has recently approved the first blood-based test as a first-line option for CRC screening. The test, Shield, can be included in any standard blood draw and done at your local physician’s office — no anesthesia, no specialist, less time out of your day.
Increasing Pennsylvania’s screening rates will not only require increasing awareness of why it’s important but also making testing more accessible. Blood test options like this are a big step in the right direction, helping to remove traditional barriers to screening.
I’ve also been encouraged to see the commonwealth’s leaders taking this issue seriously. The Pennsylvania House recently emphasized the importance of early detection by passing House Bill 1123, which aims to update health insurance coverage for CRC screening to cover screening for anyone aged 45 and up, aligning with a 2018 American Cancer Society guideline lowering the recommended age for testing from 55 to 45.
Pairing this update with policy that recognizes the importance of making all testing modalities, including blood-based tests, available to patients will help the commonwealth protect against a cancer that claims the lives of more than 2,600 Pennsylvanians every year.
My CRC fight is promising because it was found when it was.
Therefore, one of my new missions is to tell anyone who’ll listen: Don’t be too busy to take simple preventative health measures. If you’re 45 or older, talk to your doctor about your options — whether it’s a colonoscopy, a stool-based test or a new blood test — and get tested today. It just might save your life.
Jordan Frei is president of Ligonier Borough Council.
