NCHR Comments on USPSTF’s Draft Research Plan for Colorectal Cancer: Screening

National Center for Health Research: January 30, 2019

National Center for Health Research’s Public Comments on
the USPSTF’s Draft Research Plan for Colorectal Cancer: Screening

Thank you for the opportunity to share our views regarding U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)’s draft research plan regarding screening for colorectal cancer. The National Center for Health Research is a nonprofit think tank that conducts, analyzes, and scrutinizes research on a range of health issues, with particular focus on which prevention strategies and treatments are most effective for which patients and consumers. We do not accept funding from companies that make products that are the subject of our work, so we have no conflicts of interest.

The USPSTF last reviewed the literature in 2016 and provided an “A” grade for colorectal cancer screenings in adults aged 50 to 75 at average risk.1 It did not provide recommendations for particular stool-based, direct visualization, or serum screening tests, leaving the choice to be based on the balance of benefits, risks and preferences of the clinician and patient. However, recent studies based on the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program indicates that the rates of colorectal cancer are increasing among adults in their 40s.2  In response to that research, in 2018 the American Cancer Society released new guidelines recommending that adults at average risk for colorectal cancer begin screening at 45 years of age.3 In addition, the U.S Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer supports screening African Americans for colorectal cancer beginning at age 45.4

We support the efforts of the USPSTF to carefully draft a research plan to guide the systematic review of available evidence for colorectal cancer screenings to reduce rates of colorectal cancer mortality. We also strongly support the efforts of the USPSTF to review the evidence regarding the harms and benefits of specific types of colorectal cancer screenings, and how they vary by age, sex, and race/ethnicity.

The draft research plan is specifically for average-risk adults, with adults at higher risk intentionally excluded. It is essential that the USPSTF always clearly specify whether recommendations are aimed only at individuals at average-risk.

We commend inclusion of the proposed contextual questions to determine what tools exist to assess the risk of colorectal cancer in the average-risk population. However, we strongly urge that these tools also be explicit regarding the impact of race/ethnicity, sex, and age, because those traits can affect the development of colorectal cancer as well as mortality.

While we understand that screening recommendations for high-risk individuals might differ from those for average-risk individuals, it is not clear why the draft research plan excludes all studies based on high-risk individuals.  Such studies could have important implications for the effectiveness or safety of screening methods for average-risk individuals.  This decision should be clarified or reconsidered.

We disagree with the plan to exclude the analysis of minor harms that affect screening behaviors and compliance with screening guidelines, such as physical discomfort and convenience.  Preparation for colonoscopy is the subject of considerable criticism and even derision.  As a result, it is essential to consider avoidance behaviors that result from minor harms.

We also urge that the analyses include studies of the potential harms of false positives that result in unnecessary colonoscopies or polypectomy.

We commend the inclusion of demographic subgroup analyses for screening program effectiveness, screening test accuracy, and harms.  We urge that these be analyzed in terms of whether the screening tests have benefits that outweigh the risks for each subgroup, rather than compare which subgroup has the best outcomes compared to other subgroups.  What matters to patients is whether the screening test is safe and effective for patients like them, not whether there are other types of patients for whom some tests are better.

In conclusion, we strongly support the USPSTF’s efforts to update recommendations for different types of colorectal cancer screening for different demographic subgroups, as well as their broader efforts to improve the health of all Americans by making evidence-based recommendations about clinical preventive services.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this issue.

The National Center for Health Research can be reached through Stephanie Fox-Rawlings, PhD at sfr@center4research.org.

References

  1. Final Recommendation Statement: Colorectal Cancer: Screening. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. June 2017. https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/Page/Document/RecommendationStatementFinal/colorectal-cancer-screening2
  2. Siegel RL, Fedewa SA, Anderson WF, et al. Colorectal cancer incidence patterns in the United States, 1974–2013. JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 2017. 109(8). https://doi.org/10.1093/jnci/djw322
  3. Smith RA, Andrews KS, Brooks D, et al. Cancer screening in the United States, 2018: A review of current American Cancer Society guidelines and current issues in cancer screening. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. 68(4):297-316. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.3322/caac.21446
  4. Rex DK, Boland CR, Dominitz JA, et al. Colorectal cancer screening: Recommendations for physicians and patients from the US Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer. The American Journal of Gastroenterology. 112(7):1016-1030. https://www.nature.com/articles/ajg2017174