DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) – Memorial Cancer Care Center is offering free colorectal cancer take-home screening kits starting March 17.
The take-home kits will be available at 8 a.m. Thursday, March 17, inside the Memorial Cancer Care Center at Decatur Memorial Hospital, 210 W. McKinley St.
After completing the kit at home, individuals mail it back in a provided preaddressed envelope and then will receive a letter notifying them of their results.
People picking up kits must wear masks inside the facility, and fill out a short consent form in order to receive a kit. Kits will be available while supplies last.
Colorectal cancer screenings are recommended for individuals 45 years old and older, who have a history of colorectal polyps or inflammatory bowel disease, a diet high in processed food or red meat, smokers and individuals who are obese or engage in heavy alcohol use.
For people 76 years old and older, the decision to be screened should be based on a person’s preferences, life expectancy, general health and prior screening history.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death among cancers that affect both men and women.
While the fecal immunochemical test is considered the standard for detection of blood in the stool, one of the early signs of colorectal cancer, the test does not replace a colonoscopy.
According to the American Cancer Society, survival rates for colon and rectum cancer are nearly 90 percent when the cancer is diagnosed before it has extended beyond the intestinal wall.
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