SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 26 -- Health-plan patients who take advantage of periodic routine physicals are more likely to be screened for colorectal cancer, and for breast or prostate cancer, found researchers here.
Of patients who received a prepaid health exam in 2002 to 2003, colon cancer screening was three times higher compared with patients who did not have a checkup, Joshua Fenton, M.D., of the University of California, Davis here, and colleagues reported in the March 26 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Breast cancer screening for women was slightly greater among the checkup patients, while PSA testing for eligible men was almost three times greater.
These findings emerged from a retrospective cohort study to determine the association between preventive checkups and cancer testing in a population-based sample of 64,288 enrollees in a Washington State health plan (Group Health Cooperative). Participants were 52 to 78 years old and eligible for colorectal, breast, or prostate cancer screening.
Tests included completion of any colorectal cancer testing (fecal occult blood testing, sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy, or barium enema), screening mammography, and PSA testing.
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