An advocacy group in Canada is urging the country to lower the starting age for colorectal-cancer screening from 50 to 45 due to an increase in cancer rates among younger patients. Colorectal Cancer Canada is launching a campaign to encourage provinces and territories to provide stool tests to individuals five years earlier than the current practice, aligning with recommendations from the United States and Australia.

Barry Stein, the president of Colorectal Cancer Canada, emphasized the importance of saving lives and money through this initiative. Recent data shows rising rates of colorectal cancer diagnoses among Canadians under 50, while rates have been declining among those over 50 who are eligible for screening.

Currently, every province and territory, except Nunavut and Quebec, offers organized colorectal screening programs that include mail-in stool tests every two years for individuals aged 50 to 74 at average risk of developing colorectal cancer. If abnormalities are detected, patients are referred for a colonoscopy to prevent cancer.

While some critics raise concerns about resource constraints in the public-health system, proponents of lowering the starting age argue that it will ultimately save lives and reduce healthcare costs. A recent study projected that beginning screening at 45 instead of 50 could prevent thousands of cases of colorectal cancer and deaths in Canada over four decades.

Dr. Sharlene Gill, a medical oncologist and professor at the University of British Columbia, acknowledged the challenges of expanding colonoscopy capacity but stressed the importance of addressing the increasing risk of colorectal cancer among younger patients. With the release of a report recommending an overhaul of the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care, the conversation around screening guidelines is gaining momentum.