Have you heard that doctors now recommend that African-Americans begin screening for colon cancer age 45, which is 5 years earlier than the recommended age for other populations? On average, African-Americans are diagnosed with colon cancer at a younger age.
In observance of Colon Cancer Awareness Month, Capital Digestive Care is launching a new microsite to spread the word about the urgent threat of colorectal cancer in the African-American community. ACancerTooCommon.com, links readers to up-to-date infographics, videos, resources and personal stories about colorectal cancer prevention and African-Americans.
Here are some quick facts from ACancerTooCommon.com:
- African-Americans have a 20% higher chance of being diagnosed with colon cancer.
- African-Americans are more likely than other groups to die from colon cancer.
- Colon Cancer is the third most common cancer among African-American men and women.
- When screened properly, colon cancer is 90% preventable.
This isn’t the first time that Capital Digestive Care has been active in the lives Washington metropolitan area residents through programs designed to improve health and awareness. We recently partnered with Cigna and University of Maryland’s School of Public Health Equity for the HAIR (Health In-Reach and Research) initiative to reach out to African-Americans through barbers and hairdressers who were trained to talk to their clients about the delicate issues of colon cancer and colonoscopies. For more information, download our Colon Cancer Screening and Prevention fact sheet. Click here to find a gastroenterologist in the Washington, DC metropolitan area.