Colorectal Cancer Screening

Colorectal cancer is the 2nd leading cause of cancer deaths in men and women. Like breast cancer, there are often no early warning symptoms of colorectal cancer but if caught early through screening, there is a 90% chance it can be treated and cured.

Who should be screened and when?

ColonCancerCheck recommends that all Ontario men and women aged 50 and older be screened for colorectal cancer. For those at AVERAGE risk for colorectal cancer, a simple at-home test - Fecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) - is recommended every two years.
For those at INCREASED risk because of a family history, where one or more first-degree relatives (parent, sibling or child) has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, a colonoscopy is advised.

What is the ColonCancerCheck?

ColonCancerCheck is Canada’s first province-wide, population-based colorectal cancer screening program. It was developed to educate Canadians about the importance of colorectal cancer screening, reduce deaths, and support health care providers in offering the best possible colorectal cancer screening for their patients. 

Want to screen at home?

The FIT is a simple, self-administered test that can be done in the privacy of your own home. It can detect the presence of trace amounts of blood in your stool. A positive test result doesn't necessarily mean that you have colorectal cancer but does require follow-up with your family doctor or nurse practitioner. 

LifeLabs will mail eligible people a FIT kit following a request from their family doctor or nurse practitioner. Screening participants should mail their completed FIT to LifeLabs or drop it off at a LifeLabs Patient Service Centre as soon as possible.

For more information on screening for colon cancer visit Cancer Care Ontario’s website.