Ask the Doctor: Screening for ulcerative colitis and proctitis patients
Dr. Robert Madoff
Patients with ulcerative colitis may be at a higher risk for colon cancer. According the National Institutes of Health, five percent of people with the condition will develop colon cancer. But the risk depends on the amount of damage done to the colon over time. Ulcerative proctitis, however, carries a different risk. Ask the Doctor panelist Dr. Robert Madoff explains that colon cancer screening recommendations may vary in patients with proctitis.
Get Your Rear in Gear reader: I have been diagnosed with ulcerative proctitis for the last 35 years. My last colonoscopy in June indicated it was not active, however, I had my first two ademous polyps removed. My mother was diagnosed with colon cancer at age 59 (I’m 57) and she died at age 61. My brothers also have polyps. My new doctor said not to have a repeat for 5 years. What are your recommendations? Previously I have been checked every 2 years since my 30′s. This is also the first time I was told my proctitis was not active. Yet I have some symptoms.
Dr. Robert Madoff: Overall, there is no increased risk of cancer for proctitis, as opposed to colitis that extends higher in the colon. But some experts think that very longstanding proctitis like yours may require more frequent examinations. Given your family history alone, you should be colonoscopied every 5 years. Yours is not a clear cut case. Your doctor’s recommendation is reasonable but other doctors might recommend a more aggressive surveillance program like you were on before.
Robert Madoff, M.D., F.A.C.S. is a Professor of Surgery and Chief of the Division of Colon and Rectal Surgery at the University of Minnesota, and holds the Stanley M. Goldberg, MD Chair in Colon and Rectal Surgery. He is Editor-in-Chief of Diseases of the Colon & Rectum, and has served as a Co-Editor of the journal from 2001-2007
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