Colorectal cancer screening in an expanding panorama of screening programmes

Cervical and breast cancer screening programmes have been introduced in times when both the professional requirements for evidence based medicine and public demand for quantification of benefits may have been less explicit. The World Health Organisation has recommended cancer screening only for cervix, breast and colorectal cancer (CRC) – the latter leaving health authorities with a choice between a multitude of screening methods of which the efficacy has been proven only for fecal occult blood testing (FOBT). Although we are far from seeing the perfect screening method and screening programme, cost effectiveness for CRC screening has been estimated at least as cost-effective as established programmes for cervix and breast cancer screening. Established and imminent screening programmes should be considered as natural platforms for randomised trial with commitment and responsibility to continuously improve the quality and effectiveness of the screening service provided.