Colorectal Cancer Awareness: The Gastroenterology Resolution for the Future

摘要

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the most frequent and lethalcancer in Portugal [1], even though it is well establishedthat screening leads to a significant reduction inboth CRC-specific mortality [2] and incidence [3, 4].CRC is, therefore, a major public health issue and shouldbe on top of the Portuguese Gastroenterological communitypriorities. It should also be a relevant priority to otherrelevant key stakeholders like public health servicesand political decision makers.Screening has been shown to be effective; however, itseffectiveness is significantly associated with populationadherence [5, 6]. Health-care providers and especiallyhealth-care payers, whether being the state or private insurancecompanies, should be the first ones to invest in and raise public awareness to promote screening, as it isin their best interest to increase cost-effective preventivemeasures. Unfortunately, in Portugal, this role is mainlyassumed by medical and patient societies, such as the PortugueseSociety of Gastroenterology or the PortugueseSociety of Digestive Endoscopy. These associations usetraditional media and, more recently, social media to conveythese important messages. However, these actionshave a limited penetration, and in a country without apopulation-based screening program in place, withoutresponsible insurance companies who fail to focus on sustainabilityand long-term customer retention, it rests onthe medical doctors, especially gastroenterologists andgeneral practitioners (GPs), to take the opportunity to informpatients in each individual interaction about therisks of CRC and the screening options available.