Frequency of Colonoscopy

Well, I had my last C in Jan this year, and did it while I was awake. They just pumped a lot of air in there and did it. It took about 15min and I was done. It's not fun, but I did it and I'll do it that way from now on. My next C will be in 2yrs, unless something happens.

The way my GI explained it was every 5 years until i've had UC for 10 years then it was every 2 or 3. He said the chance of colon cancer increases after 10 years of this disease so more colonoscopies are needed to be safe. I'm interested what others have heard...

I saw that Oprah too! My GI wants to do my next colonoscopy 8 years after my first (almost 3 years ago). After that it decreases...I think 5 years, then 3 and then yearly. Oh and if I have active bleeding he will go ahead and do another one.

Hi, *Jen* -- I was actually thinking of you yesterday because of what Trixy wrote in the "Pharmacy is out of Rowasa" thread (original enema vs. generic)! On the subject of c-scope timing: I tend to pay attention to what gastro Dr. Daniel Present advocates because at the time I was 1st diagnosed in 1980, he & colleague Mark Chapman were about the only U.S. doctors writing/publishing reliable info on IBD for patients. (He has long experience treating IBD & does not rush to judgment on issues just to keep up with the latest trends.) It seems from his writing that he does not push annual c-scopes until the patient reaches 20 yrs post-diagnosis, UNLESS they have complications at earlier stages. He is also conservative in attitude toward dysplasia-- so, definitely not out to rush patients to major surgery for no good solid reason. C-scope is no pleasure; apart from the prep there are issues surrounding types of biopsies done + sedation administered. Generally the latter is a combo of Versed & Demerol; I believe that Versed is a no-no during pregnancy, also it can be problematic for seniors post-procedure. That being said, I have tried to get by having it done about every 2 1/2 yrs because I did have 2 polyps when initially diagnosed with UC, but otherwise responded to existing meds so that my UC did not become pancolitis. Quincy, who has long experience with proctosigmoiditis, writes that her gastro, who sounds very reasonable, favors c-scope every 3 yrs as long as biopsies come out clean.  You will likely get a reliable assessment from Uma Mahadevan that will be based on your particular physical condition, which is how scope decisions should be made. I don't think there is any one pattern that fits all, but 1-3 yrs btw scopes is the soundest interval based on current medical knowledge of IBD & CRC. / Old Hat (nearly 30 yrs with left-sided UC ... [etc.])

Hello,

I've had UC since about 1979 and for the past 10-15 years I've had a colonoscopy about every year.  I've read that the risk for colon cancer increases incrementally each year after the 10-year mark.  I used to think that it was a little often because my colitis has been relatively mild with few flares over that last 28 years.   But after this year's colonoscopy with biopsies came the report of high-grade dysplasia in the right side (ascending) of my colon and a recommendation of surgery.

In September of this year I had a total abdominal colectomy with ileo-rectal anastomosis, where they remove all of the colon from the abdominal cavity and re-attach the ileum to the top of the rectum.  I was given the option of keeping the rectum and a little of the sigmoid colon because they appeared normal from the colonoscopy and biopsy reports.  I consider myself lucky because when they biopsied the colon after removal they found a very small occurence of cancer in the ascending colon and were sure that it was all removed in the surgery.  It was at the hepatic flexure, which is the part of the colon that is close to the liver.  If the cancer had grown through the wall of the colon it would probably have been in the liver next.

So, I'd recommend getting scoped as often as your doctor suggests as I feel like it saved my life.  The surgery wasn't fun but the alternative was worse.

Old Hat - Thank you!  It is so great to hear advice from local GIs and yes I will be asking Uma about it when I go in for my first C in Jan.  Just wanted to get everyone's take on it after seeing the Oprah show(I know she isn't the best source of info, but still interesting points they brought up)

UC- So you had relatively minor UC and still had to have your colon removed?  Wow!  I love hearing from folks that have had UC for a long time.  I know everyone is different, but it is still good to hear from others so that if I do have to have something severe done eventually it won't be a 100% shock.  Thank you so much for sharing!