The Department for Public Health, an agency of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, announced receipt of a grant from Madison, Wisconsin-based Exact Sciences Corporation for 1,000 Cologuard® At-Home stool DNA colorectal screening test kits.
Distribution of these kits will provide greater opportunity for uninsured and underinsured Kentuckians to have access to colon cancer testing that can be done in the privacy of their home.
Cologuard is a take-at-home stool test that utilizes DNA in a regular bowel movement to screen for colon cancer and colon polyps. Exact Sciences is the only company currently offering stool DNA testing for colon cancer, according to the company website. Kits are door-delivered and picked up and returned to the Exact Sciences Lab by the UPS Worldwide Hub in Louisville.
If a Cologuard test result is positive, a colonoscopy is performed to search for and remove polyps in the colon.
Eric Friedlander, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, noted that the kits will be available for two years through a program created in statute by the 2008 Kentucky General Assembly, the Kentucky Colon Cancer Screening Program.
Dr. Whitney F. Jones, founder of the Colon Cancer Prevention Project and chair of the Kentucky Colon Cancer Screening Program advisory committee, described the grant as “a milestone in our vision for innovation, acceleration and most importantly, implementation of evidence-based platforms for colon cancer prevention and control.”
Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. in men and women combined even though it can be effectively prevented or detected early and treated through screening. One in three adults ages 50 to 75 are not screened as recommended according to American Cancer Society guidelines. Colorectal cancer is also on the rise in younger adults, prompting the American Cancer Society to lower the recommended screening age to 45. American Cancer Society also stressed the importance of getting screened and following all positive noninvasive screening tests with a colonoscopy.
Eric Friedlander, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, said cost is a well-known barrier to screening and often patients don’t complete a follow-up colonoscopy because they fear a bill. He said Kentuckians who are eligible to receive a Cologuard kit and whose tests results indicate the need for a colonoscopy will have this expense covered through Kentucky Colon Cancer Screening Program.
Program eligibility questions may be directed to the Kentucky Colon Cancer Screening Program. Consumers should call the Kentucky Cancer Link at (877) 597-4655.
You must be logged in to post a comment.