Patients Live a Healthier Lifestyle After Endoscopic Screening

Previous studies have been inconclusive as to whether endoscopic screening contributes to patients leading a healthier or unhealthier lifestyle. For example, patients with normal examinations may believe that they have minimal risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) even though they make unhealthy choices. Or, endoscopic screening could constitute a teachable moment, after which patients make healthier choices.

Using data from the Nurses’ Health Study, which follows lifestyle choices and health care outcomes for many years, patients who participated in screening were compared to controls who had not. Various lifestyle factors, including diet, alcohol, smoking, physical activity, and body mass index, were scored in a binary fashion before and after screening. Patients above a designated score were considered to be living a healthy lifestyle.

Endoscopic screening was associated with better adherence to a healthy lifestyle even when screening results were negative. However, improvements in lifestyle were greater when screening identified polyps. The increase in adherence to a healthy lifestyle had an odds ratio of 1.09 for negative screening, 1.19 for low-risk polyps, 1.42 for high-risk polyps, and 1.55 for CRC.