Already in his late 50s, Joe Schwan was overdue for an important cancer screening. But after getting over his fears, Schwan had the procedure.
"It was something I didn't want to do, initially," said Schwan. "It is not the painful thing that it used to be. It can definitely save your life."
It's called a colonoscopy and doctors say it's the best way to screen for colon cancer.
Already in his late 50s, Joe Schwan was overdue for an important cancer screening. But after getting over his fears, Schwan had the procedure. It's called a colonoscopy and doctors say it's the best way to screen for colon cancer.
"Colonoscopy is the gold standard," said Dr. Jeffrey Goldstein of Rochester General Hospital. The procedure allows doctors to look inside the large intestine through a flexible tube and tiny camera.
Polyps or abnormal growths can be easily seen and checked for cancer.
Doctors say anyone 50 or older should have a colonoscopy unless they are experiencing abdominal pain or have a family history.
"If dad had cancer at 45, then the children should have a screening 10 years younger, at 35. That's generally been my rule of thumb," said Dr. Goldstein.
Schwan says he's lucky he got screened when he did. Doctors removed some cancerous polyps before it was too late.
"I would have never known the polyps were there, because I had felt no ill effects whatsoever," said Schwan. "The only way we found out was the fact we actually had the procedure done."
Schwan says it may not have been the best hour of his life, but it was worth it.
"In my case, it saved my life. So I would highly push to have it done."