Colorectal Cancer Facts

· An estimated 145,290 new cases of colorectal cancer will be diagnosed in 2005 - 71,820 men and 73,470 women.

· An estimated 56,290 people will die from colorectal cancer in 2005 - 28,540 men and 27,750 women.

· Colorectal cancer is the third most common site for cancer incidence and death in both men and women and is the number two cancer-killer among men and women combined.

· Incidence of colorectal cancer is nearly the same among men and women until age 50, when it becomes just slightly higher among men.

· Ninety percent of people diagnosed with colorectal cancer are over 50 years old.

· Approximately 90 percent of all colorectal cancer cases and deaths are thought to be preventable through the use of screening tests.

· Despite available screening tools, fewer than half of people aged 50 or older have had either a fecal occult blood test (FOBT), a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy within the last five years.

· As a result of low screening rates, just 37 percent of colorectal cancer is diagnosed in its early stages, when it is still localized and has not yet spread to other parts of the body.

· When diagnosed in its early stages, colorectal cancer has a five-year survival rate of nearly 90 percent.

· The incidence of colorectal cancer is highest among African-American men and women - a rate of 64.3 per 100,000 as compared to a 55.2 per 100,000 among Caucasians and 41.4 per 100,000 among Hispanic Americans.

· Colorectal death rates have declined steadily among men since 1985 and among women since 1950.

· Nearly 75 percent of all cases of colorectal cancer are diagnosed in people with no known risk factors, including a family history.