The provincial government is rolling out a new colorectal cancer screening program in an effort to catch more cases of the deadly disease in the earliest stages.

Quebec Health Minister Yves Bolduc made the announcement yesterday, explaining that the program would be introduced in eight health centres across Quebec beginning immediately. The centres -in Montreal, Quebec City, Longueuil, Riviere du Loup, Levis and Victoriaville -will each send out letters to residents in their respective neighbourhoods between the ages of 50 and 74, said Health Department spokesperson Karine Rivard.

“They will be invited to come into the health centre and pick up the test to bring home,” she explained.

Each patient will then bring back a stool sample for testing at a local laboratory. if there is any indication of blood -an early symptom of colorectal cancer -they will be scheduled for a colonoscopy.

“Of course, blood could indicate many things, but you need to test to make sure,” Rivard said.

The health centres will be expected to respond to any additional demand for colonoscopies without compromising the care of those at high risk for colorectal cancer, those with advanced symptoms, or those in remission from the disease, Bolduc said. The program could be expanded province-wide in the future, but the department is committed to assessing the “quality and accessibility” of the initiative before broadening its scope, he said.

The Canadian Cancer Society applauded Bolduc’s announcement in a release issued yesterday afternoon, saying that if even 60 per cent of patients between 50 and 74 participate in the screenings, it could reduce the number of deaths from colorectal cancer in Quebec by up to 17 per cent.

“The CCS has been waiting for the start of a program like this,” the release said. “Since January of 2007, the vast majority of Canadian provinces and territories have already launched or announced a similar initiative.”

The CCS estimates that about 5,900 Quebecers will be found to have colorectal cancer in 2010, and that the illness will prove fatal for approximately 2,500 people in the province. Colorectal cancer usually strikes people over age 50, and is second only to lung cancer in terms of cancer-related deaths in Quebec.

mmuise@montrealgazette.com

Quebec facilities offering screening

McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), Montreal Maisonneuve-Rosemont hospital, Montreal Centre hospitalier universitaire de Quebec (CHUQ) -Quebec City Hotel-Dieu hospital, Levis CSSS Sud-Ouest-Verdun CSSS Pierre-Boucher, Longueuil CSSS Riviere du Loup, Riviere du Loup CSSS Arthabaska-et-de-l’Erable, Victoriaville

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