Dr. Oz's Strategies for Feeling Great at Every Age

Photo by: Thinkstock

IN YOUR 50s:

Test This: Get Screened for Colon Cancer

More than 90 percent of all colon cancer cases are diagnosed in people age 50 and over. Having found a precancerous polyp just after my 50th birthday, I can't urge you enough to follow the American Cancer Society's advice to schedule a colonoscopy (or sigmoidoscopy, which is less invasive). During the procedure, a physician inserts a long tube outfitted with a

... more 

Photo by: Thinkstock

IN YOUR 50s:

Test This: Get Screened for Colon Cancer

More than 90 percent of all colon cancer cases are diagnosed in people age 50 and over. Having found a precancerous polyp just after my 50th birthday, I can't urge you enough to follow the American Cancer Society's advice to schedule a colonoscopy (or sigmoidoscopy, which is less invasive). During the procedure, a physician inserts a long tube outfitted with a tiny video camera into your large intestine through your rectum to look for growths. Put off by the process? Take this quiz to find out why you shouldn't be.

True or False?:
1. Colon polyps can sometimes be symptomless.

2. With a light sedative to help you relax, a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy can be painless.

3. The survival rate for colon cancer caught early is about 90 percent.

(Answers: All true.)

less