Peace of mind is a valuable(some would say priceless commodity). As a nurse(male), I've always been proactive about monitoring my health status. That includes testing that might be distasteful or uncomfortable. My own personal experience with colonoscopy was unpleasant, but worth it. You will always regret an action deferred for fear of what you might find out. Knowledge is power. Aphorisms aside, when you choose to be ignorant, you cede control to others. It's just bad personal policy.

Ankh

Q

I had one done a few years ago. I just want to add a different experience than some of the people who have written. I was awake and aware during the whole procedure. I found it fascinating to see my colon on the monitor. They never show you the colonoscope but I think it is a rather small diameter. I did have some internal pain during the procedure, but nothing like having a dentist work on your teeth. I found it much more fascinating than painful. And when you are in recovery, you can fart all you want, in fact they encourage it. That's something you don't get to experience every day!

My heart goes out to the letter writer, who was diagnosed with cancer. However, the colonoscopy caught it early and his chances of a cure are quite good.

I wish I could get down on my knees and beg everyone to have this all important test! Especially men, the one with the "psycho-sexual" issues about something going "up there".

My father is dead because he refused to have a colonscopy, something which all his doctors and his family begged hiim to have because of his age (70s). He wouldn't do it, under the theme of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". He never smoked and was a vegan -- none of this mattered.

By the time he was examined, his cancer had advanced and spread almost everywhere. All they could do was remove some intestine, so he would be more comfortable, and sew him back up. He died October 2004. His death was entirely unnecessary and preventable, and he was otherwise in good health.

As a result, my brother and I had colonoscopies ourselves in our 40s. Thankfully, we are currently OK. I am a huge chicken and I assure that there was ZERO pain and discomfort. The probe is very small. This did not even begin to compare to a barium enema, which I had decades early for another problem altogether, and that was genuinely uncomfortable and unpleasant. THE COLONOSCOPY ITSELF IS NOTHING. You have had teeth cleaning that was more painful.

It's horrible enough to see people suffer and die from cancer, and even worse to realize that most of this suffering from colorectal cancer is preventable.

The worst part, which one poster refers to, is that not all insurance covers this. (And woe unto those folks who have no insurance, because the procedure runs about $2000.) My doctor's nurse called and told me that this might not be covered, and that there was NO WAY to find out in advance if it would be covered. The insurance company (Medical Mutual) is apparently very capricious in whether they pay or not. Nonetheless, this is so urgent, especially for those 50 and over, I feel you must do whatever you can to have the procedure anyways -- take out a loan, max out your credit card, sell some stuff on ebay .... I don't care, just do SOMETHING, because if you have ever seen someone die from colon cancer, you would know that this is absolutely positively not the way you want to exit this life on earth.

JUST DO IT!!!

It was quite a coincidence to read your story about a young man of 40 who was reluctant to go get a colonoscopy. I had just returned from the clinic today after having a flexible sigmoidoscopy. I am 53 years of age and this is my first one. They found 5 small polyps, some hemmorhoid problems. I am expecting these polyps to be benign, since they were very small. I am glad I had done today, even more glad after reading your column. People shouldn't be afraid of this procedure. There is a little discomfort with air, but the whole thing was over in 20 minutes. And it probably saved my life. Unfortunately, I also found out today that I have Hypertrophic Cardiac Myopathy, a thickening of the heart muscle. While in the hospital last summer, I had an echocardiogram to check out a murmur. Since I didn't have any symptoms, I figured I was OK. The doctor didn't even bother to tell me until today, even though I found out that my brother was recently diagnosed with the same condition. It's hereditary. So what do I do now? I don't know. I've had many opportunities to be taken from this world. When I was born, the doctors had perform 8-10 operations to rebuild my ureters. I almost died of a staff infection when I was 9. I have lived under the dark spectre of mortality throughout my life. " Would I ever be normal, would I live to a certain age" were questions that came up often during my adolescence and early adulthood. But somehow, I survived, I thrived and gave of my gifts, one of which is love of music (I am a talented professional violinist). Now after today's news, although disappointing, I am not defeated. Anyone who has been through what I've been through and survived has to have been put here in this world for a reason. And that every day that passes is an opportunity to experience something new, a friendship, a sunset like no other sunset I've seen, the passage of reflected sunlight on my window...

Boy, this letter brings up some bad memories.

Four years ago, my father, previously healthy as a horse, was diagnosed with advanced rectal cancer. Thankfully, he is now cancer free, albeit with the constant reminder of a permanent colostomy.

I can't help feeling that if he'd known that his own mother had died of this disease, instead of "women's cancer" as the rest of his family so delicately put it, and that many members of his family had polyps, he may have gone for a colonoscopy at 40, instead of when he started feeling sick.

The fact that his family would rather have it known that his mother died of a gynecological disease rather than colon cancer shows just how stigmatized this problem was in the past.

Know your family's health history. If older members of your family seem deliberately fuzzy about why grandma died, press harder. It may save your life.