Raise your colon cancer IQ in March

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. Here are a few things you can do to help yourself, your friends and your family learn more about this highly preventable disease:

• Visit the Hutchinson Center’s End Colon Cancer Now website. There, you can learn about colon cancer screening and send e-cards to friends about the importance of screening.
  
• Take the website's quiz to see if you are at risk.
  
• Wear blue clothing on Friday, March 4, Dress in Blue Day. Cancer survivor Anita Mitchell started it in Seattle in 2006 and built it into a national awareness event.
  

Screening saves lives

Colorectal cancer—cancer of the colon or rectum—is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. It is also is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in the U.S., occurring more than 90 percent of the time in people age 50 and older.

While diet and exercise may play a role in preventing colon cancer, the most important way to prevent death from the disease is through early detection. This means regular colorectal cancer screening tests beginning at age 50—earlier if you are at higher risk.