Cologuard is a sophisticated stool test that checks for microscopic blood and altered DNA which can signal the presence of colon cancer or precancerous polyps. Some patients are attracted to this non-invasive option rather than to traditional colonoscopy experience which includes the ever popular cathartic cocktail. This test was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2014. The test was initially quite popular as patients and physicians were enthusiastic about this new colon cancer screening option. Often in medicine, what’s new becomes popular but initial enthusiasm tends to ebb over time. (With time, the initial safety and efficacy reports for medicines and diagnostic tests may not be sustained. This is why post-marketing surveillance after initial approval is so critical.) Patients were advised early on, as they are now, that a positive Cologuard test meant that a follow up colonoscopy was mandatory. Certainly, when I or...
MD Whistleblower presents vignettes and commentaries on the medical profession. We peek 'behind the medical curtain' and deliver candor and controversy in every post.