Influence of Age and Comorbidity on Colorectal Cancer Screening in the Elderly

Carrie N. Klabunde, Yingye Zheng, Virginia P. Quinn, Elisabeth F. Beaber, Carolyn M. Rutter, Ethan A. Halm, Jessica Chubak, Chyke A. Doubeni, Jennifer S. Haas, Aruna Kamineni, Marilyn M. Schapira, Pamela M. Vacek, Michael P. Garcia, Douglas A. Corley

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

21 Scopus citations

Abstract

Introduction Expert recommendations differ for colorectal cancer screening in the elderly. Recent studies suggest that healthy adults aged >75 years may benefit from screening. This study examined screening use and follow-up, and how they varied by health status within age strata, among a large cohort of elderly individuals in community settings. Methods A population-based, longitudinal cohort study was conducted among health plan members aged 65–89 years enrolled during 2011–2012 in three integrated healthcare systems participating in the Population-Based Research Optimizing Screening through Personalized Regimens consortium. Comorbidity measurements used the Charlson index. Analyses, conducted in 2015, comprised descriptive statistics and multivariable modeling that estimated age by comorbidity–specific percentages of patients for two outcomes: colorectal cancer screening uptake and follow-up of abnormal fecal blood tests. Results Among 846,267 patients, 72% were up-to-date with colorectal cancer screening. Of patients with a positive fecal blood test, 65% received follow-up colonoscopy within 3 months. Likelihood of being up-to-date and receiving timely follow-up was significantly lower for patients aged ≥76 years than their younger counterparts (p<0.001). Comorbidity was less influential than age and more strongly related to timely follow-up than being up-to-date. In all age groups, considerable numbers of patients with no/low comorbidity were not up-to-date or did not receive timely follow-up. Conclusions In three integrated healthcare systems, many older, relatively healthy patients were not screening up-to-date, and some relatively young, healthy patients did not receive timely follow-up. Findings suggest a need for re-evaluating age-based screening guidelines and improving screening completion among the elderly.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)e67-e75
JournalAmerican Journal of Preventive Medicine
Volume51
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2016

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Epidemiology
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Influence of Age and Comorbidity on Colorectal Cancer Screening in the Elderly'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this