Hospitals Not Checking Properly To Prevent Spread Of Colon Cancer

A study conducted by Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and the American College of Surgeons found that nearly two-thirds of U.S. Hospitals are not checking enough lymph nodes after a patient has had colon surgery to determine whether the disease has spread.

A recommended minimum of 12 lymph nodes should be examined to determine whether the colon cancer has metastasized and to diagnose the stage of cancer more accurately. That information is used to determine whether the patient should receive chemotherapy, which can affect the spread of the cancer.

To have more than 60% of the nearly 1,300 hospitals surveyed not doing the minimum check borders on criminal conduct especially since these hospitals treat about 60% of all colon cancer cases.

(Reported Northwestern Winter 2008)

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