The little-discussed risks and side effects of colonoscopy screening and why, in some cases, people would do best to avoid them. If you must have one, how to minimize the dangers as much as possible and a safe alternative to consider as a logical middle ground.
March is National Colon Cancer Awareness Month each year. At that time, the usual health experts trot out on TV and print media to urge us all to get a colonoscopy. The inherent risks of this reviled procedure especially for those over age 50 are usually conveniently glossed over in favor of an aggressive push about the benefits.
That “kick in the butt” might initially sound like a good idea. However, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine, the rate of serious complications from colonoscopy screening is ten times higher than any other commonly used cancer-screening test.
According to Konstantin Monastyrky, author of Fiber Menace:
The odds of being killed or injured by the side effects of colonoscopy may exceed your odds of getting colorectal cancer in the first place.
He further points out that the procedure is far from infallible. It often fails to catch colorectal cancer in the first place. In addition, it can cause, contribute to or accelerate the growth of colorectal and other cancers.
Let’s go into each of these colonoscopy risks in detail.
Dysbiosis
Intestinal flora is disrupted by a colonoscopy because the procedure requires a thorough washing out of the large intestine with large doses of synthetic laxatives. This is followed by bowel irrigation with polyethylene glycol and hypertonic electrolytes.
These substances kill bacteria, both good and bad just like antibiotics. The gut dysbiosis that inevitably follows contributes to irregularity, constipation, colitis, IBS, Crohn’s, and other diseases known to increase colon cancer risk. Dysbiosis also contributes to a wide range of other autoimmune health problems.
Worsening of Stool Patterns
Those already affected by hemorrhoids, chronic constipation, IBS, or diverticulosis may find these conditions become worse after colonoscopy.
Complications
Serious complications, such as colon perforation, occur in five out of every one thousand colonoscopies.
The risks of delayed bleeding, infection, and ulceration are even higher. Unfortunately, reporting of these complications in connection with colonoscopy is rare.
Increased Risks of Stroke, Heart Attack, and Pulmonary Embolisms
Dangerous blood clotting is a side effect of anesthesia, particularly among patients with diabetes or heart disease.
Infections
Procedures performed under anesthesia are associated with an increased risk of serious infections. This includes pneumonia or pyelonephritis.
False Sense of Security
Doctors miss from 15-27 percent of polyps, including six percent of large tumors. The New England Journal of Medicine even reported that some doctors blast through the colonoscopy so fast they miss cancer in full bloom!
Indeed, the desire for speed is why most colonoscopies today are done under anesthesia. Might there be a profit motive? Some doctors do 60 colonoscopies per day at an average cost of $1,500 to $2000 each. You do the math.
Colonoscopy Alternative
Many people do not realize that you can order an at-home colorectal screening kit to avoid most colonoscopies. They are inexpensive, safe, and convenient. Blood, polyps, and other abnormalities are quickly detected by using a simple stool sample. Results are available fast with lab accurate results.
If you have a positive result from one of these home tests, then go get a colonoscopy. But, in most cases, you will get a negative result, saving you the discomfort and risks of the actual colorectal screening.
Ways to Manage Colonoscopy Risks
Here are a few suggestions about how to increase the level of safety and accuracy in the screening for colon cancer.
- Those with a family history of colon cancer or otherwise at high risk probably should do a colonoscopy. But it is best to request to have it done without general anesthesia. That’s where the majority of the risks are. Some doctors offer inhalation sedation as a safer alternative. Doctors who prefer knocking the patient out use this approach so they can ‘jam’ through the colon much faster. Billing for anesthesiology increases revenues for the hospital too.
- Doing radiography first is pointless. The reason? If they find some polyps, you will still need to have a colonoscopy. Besides, you don’t want all that huge exposure to ionizing radiation.
- If you do decide to go through with a colonoscopy, at least prepare with clear broth you make yourself. Commercial brands at the store are not nutritious and contain unhealthy additives and MSG. Exposure to these chemicals can potentially make digestive issues worse and recovery more difficult.
- After the colonoscopy, follow this protocol to rebuild gut flora. It is the same process recommended by experts after a round of antibiotics.
Kaayla has written a great article. My personal and medical degree opinion (my 2 cents worth) is that colonoscopy is a worthwhile screening tool IF the risks are minimized. Colonoscopy has the highest incidence of serious complications of ALL on cancer screening exams and this is mainly due to unnecessary sedation (sedation carries risks and increases the possibility of perforation because the patient can’t feel pain/pressure if the scope is looped)… Unsedated colonoscopy is common worldwide but rare in the US; if you will tolerate some gas pains it’s easy (I have had several unsedated colonoscopies). Trouble is: most patients who are motivated to do unsedated colonoscopy are bulled into receiving dangerous sedation because many (not all) endo docs “refuse” to do an unsedated exam. This is total BS. Any GI doc who is worthy of the title will do an unsedated colonoscopy if the patient requests such and is willing to endure a little cramping instead of serious sedation risks. Many patients call and ask if the doc will do an unsedated exam ane told flatly “no”. This is a lie told my gatekeepers, clerks who schedule the exams. If you want an unsedated exam (like all of mine are and I’m an MD) I hate to suggest this but: schecule your colonoscopy and don’t mention unsedation, play dumb when they expain the “required” sedation and driver (not needed) and show up for the exam prepped without q driver. Tell them you are willing to do unsedated colonoscopy and they will do it; and in my experience the nurses and docs are very supportive once the snarky anesthesia nurses are out of the picture.
Hey guys, I just wanted to know how do they sterilize the colonoscopies, I have red that they cannot be completely sterilized and chances of transmitting infection is still there. Pls help
My younger sister (age 37) was just diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer and our grandfather died of colon cancer so I am high risk for this type of cancer. I just got my preparation instructions for the procedure and am concerned with all the stuff I have to take to clear the bowel. Any suggestions about how to rebuild a healthy gut flora after this procedure?
Valuable information. Fortunate me I discovered your site unintentionally, and I’m surprised why this accident did not took place earlier! I bookmarked it.
I am over 60 years old, lonely, and due to loss of work and the economy, with little money.
I see NO reason to undergo the risks of the colonoscopy procedure itself since after the terror of a previous clear sigmoidoscopy, I have realized that it is better to take my chances. Because even a clear colonoscopy would still mean that I am still old, lonely and poor.
I’ll just stick with the Cologuard test. If it indicates cancer or pre-cancer, then I’ll just enjoy whatever time I have and move to a state with physician assisted suicide. That’s my plan.
It is outrageous that people with NO risk factors except age and with healthy lifestyles are signing waivers for a screening test. That just screams out that the colostomy screening procedure is a larger risk than any actual findings.
Hi, I just wanted to say that it should also be made public knowledge that you can die from any type of test like this.
My Brother had a colonoscopy without anaesthetic aged 53 years old and died, how we do not know, as an autopsy came back totally clear of any ill health.
We are now awaiting coroner’s court date
So please do not have them unless totally necessary.
Annette (England)
Now there is a non invasive screening alternative. Did not read all the comments, so my apologies if it has already been mentioned.
bringmethenews.com/2014/08/12/fda-approves-colonoscopy-alternative-developed-at-mayo-clinic/
Colonoscopy is a very invasive procedure for cancer screening.
Where are the statistics that demonstrate this cancer screening tool reduces colon cancer rates? In fact all these colonoscopies for the past 15 years has not decreased colon cancer. Show me the stats before I will agree to have an invasive procedure.
I was 57 years old in 2010 when I had my first colonoscopy, 50 being the standard age for first time. I have had four more since then, I will be 62 in a few months. I followed natural health and I thought I didn’t really need one. I’m not sure what it was at 57, maybe it was my husband telling me to get one, maybe it was a nudge from our retired family doctor. The very experienced GI Dr., who was about my age when I finally came in, told me they never know who has polyps until they have colonoscopies. I had several hyperplastic (harmless) polyps and several adenomas, one of which was considered large. All were removed and I had to go back in a year. Same thing next year and next. I suffered no damage from the procedures, I took probiotics to re establish flora. I had been on high fiber, low fat, almost vegetarian//vegan diet with lots of unsoaked whole wheat in the mid 90’s and had horrible health, fortunately nothing chronic. I got off that somewhere in the late 90’s, put grass fed meat, cheese, butter and less wheat into my diet. By 2007 I had lost the twenty-five or so pounds gained on the low fat diet, I thought I was then eating healthy and then I read Sally Fallon’s book somewhere in 2009 and realized all the things I didn’t know about healthy eating; soaking wheat and grains, kefir, fermented vegetables and probably a few more things. But I had always made our meals from scratch, was not into restaurant or fast food – I guess I am letting you know I was fairly health conscious. In late 2011, after my first two colonoscopies with a few adenomas, I went from following Nourishing Traditions onto GAPS, hoping to fix whatever was going wrong with my colon and because soaking and sprouting wheat was wreaking havoc with my system as were some of the ferments. That lasted about four months; coming off it, I learned I had a sensitivity to wheat, and I got off wheat fully by early 2014. I’m not sure at that time which stool on the Bristol chart would represent mine, but as of a few months prior to my last colonoscopy just over a month ago, my stools began to look like # 4 on the Bristol stool chart. Thank you Mr. Monastyrski for sharing the chart. I read on his website about getting too much fiber and I stopped putting handfuls of desiccated coconut in my morning yogurt – my stomach aches went away and it may be this helped change my b.m.’s to normal. Thank you again Mr. Monastyrski for helping us understand eating too much fiber can mess us up. My reasoning for all that coconut was that coconut in all its forms is the darling now of the natural health movement, and I was eating it to add fiber to my wheatless, grainless meals. Along with removing excess fiber, I also believe adding morning coffee to my regimen helped get things moving, creating regularity as well as eating two or three regular meals a day with little or no snacking. I also added vitamin a to my vitamin d regimen along with trace minerals, magnesium and N.A.G and vit. c. Interesting, my choice of supplements are very similar to Mr. M’s.
So what happened with my recent fifth colonoscopy? Bravo! I had two polyps, way down from previous years. I would need another procedure either two or three years out depending on whether they were adenomas. But no colonoscopy in one year! Off to the lab they went, one was hyperplastic, the other was serrated sessile polyp. That’s not actually bravo material as I started researching what it means to have serrated sessile adenoma tumor. It is considered precancerous and according to NCBI Pub Med ssa’s are high risk.
Why am I writing this long post? If it isn’t obvious – maybe some of you would re think your decision to cancel out on your colonoscopy. I would never have known nor would I have worked so hard to normalize my bowel habits had I not had that first colonoscopy. I really didn’t even realize my bowel movements were problematic. After my first colonoscopy found polyps and adenomas, I was asked if my family had a history of polyps or colon cancer. No. I was not considered to be in the high risk group. The large tumor would have likely continued to grow, turning cancerous, while I carefully chose pastured products, organics and non gmo foods. Will my normalized poop give me a healthy colon? I hope so! Does normal poop mean normal colonoscopy? I hope so! If you are reading Mr. Monastyrski, I would urge you to read his page on who needs a colonoscopy. “Colorectal cancer risk factors.” It is a very long list and likely you will find yourself there. For me I will continue with colonoscopy as Dr.’s recommend them to me.
Patti,
Sorry about what happened with your recent 5th Colonoscopy! Please start taking ginger supplements as prevention ASAP, taking ginger supplements before and after the whipple surgery for my dad’s late stage bile duct cancer at age 86, he remained cancer free for four years without taking radiation or chemo.
Thanks to – cancer.med.umich.edu/news/gingerovarian06.shtml
Great article.. Colonoscopy is a great colon cancer screening tool, but patients are often bullied into accepting toxic sedation/anesthesia drugs as “required” for comfortable colonoscopy. BS, Colonoscopy can be and is done without sedation in most of the world; I’m sorry to say that US docs “insist” on sedation so that they can do a colonoscopy quickly (and this is less safe-by a long shot. Most patients over 60 experience significant long-term memory loss from common drugs such as Versed (used to make patients forget the exam-until they get home!) they the PTSD starts…having “anesthesia” is a costly ruse where a anesthesia nurse not an anesthesiologist renders the patient sort of sensless with propofol or other drugs…which can increase patient risks significantly. requestunsedated colonoscopy; if you doc refuses skip it