Originally broadcast April 3, 2025
Roughly 85% of respondents to a survey cited by Michael Sapienza, CEO of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, say they would rather do their taxes than get a colonoscopy.
“We need to do a better job of talking to the public about the barriers,” Sapienza tells “Conversations on Health Care” hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter.
Sapienza, whose mother died of the disease at age 58, says people may be less than excited to do the preparation, or colon cleanout, necessary for a screening. Or that they don’t want the hassle of taking time off from work. But he emphasized that 45 is the recommended age that people begin getting regular screenings for polyps that, at some point, could develop into cancer.
“45 is the new 50,” says Sapienza, whose alliance was instrumental in lowering the recommended screening age and, in 2022, recruited actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney to have their colon screenings filmed.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podchaser | TuneIn | RSS | More
Dr. Betancourt, president of the influential The Commonwealth Fund, is committed to “Affordable, quality health…
President Trump signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” into law on July 4 and…
ENCORE - Originally aired November 7, 2024 There’s a lot of attention right now around…
Originally broadcast May 15, 2025 Millions are still living with the effects of Long COVID…
It’s a troubling situation: Nearly one in three high school students report persistent feelings of…
Description: Dr. Igor Koralnik, the co-director of Northwestern Medicine’s Comprehensive COVID-19 Center, is one of…