Yield and cost of government-organized colorectal cancer screening in young high-risk population in Northeast China

Guidelines for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening recommend screening at age 40 for high-risk population in China. However, the yield and cost of CRC screening in younger population are lacking. This analysis aimed to evaluate the yield and cost of CRC screening in high-risk 40- to 54-year-olds. Individuals aged 40–54 years who were determined to have a high risk of CRC were recruited from December 2012 to December 2019. We calculated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the detection rate of colorectal lesions among the three age groups and further calculated number of colonoscopies needed to screen (NNS) to detect one advanced lesion and cost of each group. The detection rates of advanced colorectal neoplasm in men aged 45–49 years (OR = 2.00, 95% CI: 0.93–4.30) and 50–54 years (OR = 2.19, 95% CI: 1.04–4.62) were higher than that aged 40–44 years. The detection rates of colorectal adenoma in women aged 50–54 years was higher than that aged 40–44 years (OR = 1.64, 95% CI: 1.23–2.19). Among the male screening population, NNS and cost to detect one advanced lesion in participants aged 45–49 years were similar to that aged 50–54 years, saving approximately half endoscopic resources and financial expenses compared with screening that aged 40–44 years. From the perspective of screening results and costs, it might be beneficial to delay the starting age of screening by gender. This study may provide reference for optimizing CRC screening strategies.