No one likes to talk about a colonoscopy. Certainly, when you list appropriate dinner table discussion subjects, it would rank at or near the bottom.  

The only thing worse for most people than talking about a colonoscopy is preparing for one.  

The liquid used a couple of days prior to the procedure does not produce an outcome most of us want to deal with. I suggest selecting an enjoyable book before you start.  

There are many tests for colorectal cancer, including the home test which features the cartoon shipping box in television commercials.  

But the best way to determine if your colon is working the way it should and is free of cancerous polyps is a colonoscopy, a procedure that usually requires 30 to 60 minutes.  

It is relatively painless since you are sedated. Usually, you can go home shortly after you wake up.  

The new guidelines for colonoscopies now say you should have your first one at 45. That is much younger than previous recommendations, but younger people are being diagnosed with colorectal cancer at an increasing rate.  

I am 20 years past 45. My first colonoscopy went off without a hitch. No polyps. No problems.  

Five years later it was a different story. This time around there were two polyps. One was removed that day. The other showed signs of cancer. 

Early detection is a key to successful treatment of colorectal cancer. I was taking a blood thinner which produced symptoms in me much sooner than is usually the case.  

If you are reading this, I hope and pray I am out of the hospital and in the process of recovering from a successful removal of that cancerous polyp. God has been incredibly good to me through my previous health challenges as many have prayed for me through the years. 

I am a big believer in prayer, and I know when I went into surgery Tuesday morning prayers were being lifted up for me. Cancer is a scary word. I didn’t expect to hear it ever being directed at me.  

But my doctor told me the odds are on my side. He is supposed to be the best at what he does so I pray he was accurate in his diagnosis.  

Again, let me emphasize the importance of early detection in order to increase the odds of a positive outcome.  

Listen to your doctor if he tells you, it is time to see a gastroenterologist. Quickly schedule an appointment. Usually, if you have no signs of colorectal cancer a colonoscopy is recommended every 10 years.  

Because of my symptoms my second one was scheduled sooner. I am certain my third one will be sooner than a five-year interval.  

No one likes to go to a doctor. No one enjoys a colonoscopy. Schedule it for yourself and for your family. In the words of the Nike ads, “Just do it.”