A U.S. study of more than 3,000 people finds a simple test for colon cancer done at the doctor's office missed cancerous lesions 95 percent of the time. A study of 3,121 people without symptoms for colorectal cancer, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, showed fecal occult blood tests done in a physician's office correctly identified only 4.9 percent of 284 study participants who researchers determined had cancer or large colon polyps that likely would become cancerous. When the test for blood in the stool was done by patients at home and later returned to a physician's office for analysis, 23.9 percent of the tests in the study showed positive results. Current U.S. screening for adults over age 50 recommends the fecal occult blood test be done at home and returned to a physician's office. A survey of 1,147 physicians also found 90 percent of doctors reported using the fecal occult blood test at least once per month and one-third used it in-office rather than having the patient do the test at home. © Copyright 2005 by United Press International

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