Key clinical point: Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening before 50 years of age was associated with a reduced risk for CRC among US women, including CRC diagnosis before 55 years of age.
Major finding: Compared with no endoscopy, initiating endoscopy at the age of <45 (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.37; 95% CI 0.26-0.53), 45-49 (aHR 0.43; 95% CI 0.29-0.62), 50-54 (aHR 0.47; 95% CI 0.35-0.62), and ≥55 (aHR 0.46; 95% CI 0.30-0.69) years was associated with a significantly lower CRC risk, with initiating endoscopy before 50 years of age being associated with a decreased risk for CRC diagnosis before 55 years of age (<45 years: aHR 0.45, 95% CI 0.29-0.70; 45-49 years: aHR 0.43, 95% CI, 0.24-0.76).
Study details: This prospective cohort study enrolled 111,801 female health professionals aged 26-46 years with no history of cancer from the Nurses’ Health Study II.
Disclosures: The study was supported by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). Some authors reported serving as consultants for or receiving research grants or personal fees from various organizations, including NIH.
Source: Ma W et al. Age at initiation of lower gastrointestinal endoscopy and colorectal cancer risk among US women. JAMA Oncol. 2022 (May 5). Doi: 10.1001/jamaoncol.2022.0883