Story Behind the Curve: The survival rate measures how long a patient lives after their initial diagnosis. Relative survival is the ratio of a patient’s chance of surviving a given time interval to that of a person of the same age and sex in the general US population. The five-year relative survival rate for men and women diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2010-2015 in Connecticut was 70%.

Date of next data update: Aug 15th, 2024

Potential Partners

• Connecticut Department of Social Services
• Office of the Healthcare Advocate
• Hospitals
• Local public health agencies
• Federally-qualified health centers
• Health care providers including oncology nurses and oncologists
• Visiting nurses associations
• Health care providers of palliative and hospice care
• Radiology facilities
• Health professional associations
• Health insurers
• American Cancer Society
• Connecticut Cancer Partnership
• Pharmaceutical companies
• Patient advocates
• Schools of public health, allied health, nursing, and medicine
• Community-based organizations
• Faith-based organizations

Early detection of colorectal cancer through screening (i.e., FOBT/FIT test, sigmoidoscopy, or colonoscopy) has been determined to reduce mortality. Screening tests can find cancer at an early stage, before symptoms appear, when it can be treated more easily. In addition to detecting cancer early, screening for colorectal cancer can prevent these cancers by identifying colorectal polyps that can be removed.

To ensure that all individuals who are age-appropriate receive the needed screening services, the Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends:

• evidence-based client reminder systems
• small media targeted at specific populations in selected geographic locations
• one-on-one education
• reducing structural barriers that prevent individuals from getting colorectal cancer screening
• evidence-based health care provider reminder systems
• evidence-based health care provider assessment and feedback systems

Potential Strategies

• Conduct public education and outreach initiatives to educate all individuals about the advantages of colorectal cancer screening, as well as risks and how to access screening services
• Collaborate with large health systems to implement evidence-based client reminder systems, and provider assessment and feedback systems to improve referrals for colorectal cancer screenings
• Utilize community health workers to conduct one-on-one and group education about the importance of colorectal cancer screening at regular intervals, to assist with reducing structural barriers, and to provide support during and after treatment
• Utilize clinical health navigators to provide care coordination and patient navigation services to help all individuals with positive results get appropriate follow-up care, to assist with reducing structural barriers related to that follow-up care, and to provide support during treatment
• Collaborate with partners to increase availability of no-cost or low-cost colonoscopies, and funding resources for treatment costs
• Conduct targeted education and outreach initiatives in areas with high proportion of late-stage diagnoses for colorectal cancer