For so long, colorectal cancer screening beginning at age 50 has been gospel in preventative medicine.

But recently, trends in the incidence of colorectal cancer suggest we may be doing to much screening in the wrong people, and not enough screening in the right people. This means missed diagnoses and unnecessary interventions. 

But recent research offers an alternative that we hope will target screening for the right people, while the rest of us get to avoid the "scope."

Does this approach provide what we need to keep the most people the healthiest for the longest time?

Resources:

USPSTF recommendations for colorectal cancer screening (note -a new draft update is in progress now, so these could potentially change in the near future).

BMJ recommendations on colorectal cancer screening

QCancer risk calculator for 15 year risk of colorectal cancer