LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — The recent deaths of actors Catherine O'Hara and James Van der Beek have brought renewed attention to colorectal cancer, a disease that disproportionately affects Kentucky residents.
Van der Beek died at 48 less than three years after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer. A death certificate for O'Hara, who was 71, revealed a rectal cancer diagnosis.
In Kentucky, colorectal cancer rates are above the national average. As the second-leading cause of cancer-related death in the state, it's estimated that 2,580 Kentuckians will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer this year, according to the American Cancer Society. Of those, 900 will die from the disease.
"This has become a much larger conversation," said Dr. Nicolas Burnett, a radiation oncologist and part of the cancer care team at CHI Saint Joseph Health.
The disease is increasingly affecting younger populations.
"In a younger and younger population, people in their 40s, people in their 30s are being diagnosed with colorectal cancer," Burnett said.
Colorectal cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in adults under age 50 in the U.S. as of 2023, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Burnett emphasizes the importance of getting screened early.
"What you want is you want to find more people at an earlier, curative stage," Burnett said.
The American Cancer Society recommends that those at average risk begin regular screening at 45. A new Kentucky law that took effect this year expanded access to screening for high-risk patients.
According to the Legislative Research Commission, high-risk patients meeting specific criteria now qualify to be screened under 45, as noted by Dr. Sandy Kavalukas, a University of Louisville Health oncologist.
"That's the biggest change, it's really if you have any high-risk features or something that might elevate your family risk, your screening guideline is 40 not 45," Kavalukas said.
As for increased awareness?
"Colorectal cancer, I certainly think is one of those that we are now starting to have more of a conversation about that we probably should have been having all along," Burnett said.
According to the American Cancer Society, only 37% of adults ages 45 to 49 are up to date on their colorectal cancer screening. More details on screening recommendations are available here.
