Scheduled Visit (Fecal Occult Screening)

Fecal Occult Screening also known as guaiac test is a procedure use to detect minute blood in the stool that is often not visible in our naked eyes. Having a blood in the stool is not normal and when there is blood present whether microscopic or eminent, it can be a sign of digestive system problems such as polyp found in rectum or colon, lesion in the digestive tract, and worst tumors that are cancerous. Fecal Occult Blood screening is often used by doctors to screen for colorectal cancer.

According to American Cancer Society, Colon/Rectal cancer is the 3rd most common carcinoma for both men and women excluding skin cancer. The most recent estimate made by ACS shows 39,510 new cases of rectal cancer has been diagnosed each year in US alone. Detecting the cancer in an early stage using Fecal Occult Blood Test alongside with other imaging techniques would be a favorable prognosis for patient.

There are multiple causes as to why blood appears in the stool, below are some conditions: Before you take the test doctors will advise you not to eat the following food as this can alter the result of the exam: Fecal occult test requires 3 stool sample and the stools should be taken one day apart. During bowel movement scrape a small portion of stool on one end of the applicator place it in a clean small container. During your appointment your doctor may give you home test kit and the instructions are clearly stated in the kit. Or you can send the samples in a container inside an envelope directly to your doctor’s office for evaluation.

Fecal Occult Blood Test should be done every year after the age of 50 years, or earlier if a person is at risk of colorectal cancer. A positive occult blood means that blood is present in your stool. A negative test result means that no blood was found in the feces. Depending on your doctor’s evaluation, you should follow his recommendation for regular cancer screening.

Reminder: Fecal blood test can only determine that there is a bleeding in somewhere in your digestive system however It cannot determine which part. If the result is positive then further tests will usually be arranged by your physician to find the source of the bleeding, endoscopy, colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy and various scans, are indicated to confirm the diagnosis or to pinpoint the location of the bleeding. Scheduled visit to your physician is important to manage the disease properly. The goal of planned visit is to prevent the spread of the disease.

In the scheduled visit, doctors will discuss health education about nutrition, proper diet, exercise, etc. after the assessment; physician will explain his findings to the patient. The doctor will plan another scheduled visit depending on his assessment.