As for the pain: You're usually put under anesthesia so you won't feel a thing. Plus, most people need the test only every 10 years after age 50, according to AGA's recommendations.
But fear of the prep and procedure are just two of the top reasons for avoiding colonoscopies, according to the Colon Cancer Coalition. Many women also assume they're in the clear because they have no symptoms or family history of colon cancer.
Not true. Here are 8 reasons to schedule your colonoscopy now:
1. Colon cancer runs in the family.
The No. 1 risk factor?
"A family history of colon cancer, particularly in first-degree relatives – mother, father, brothers, sisters," says gastroenterologist Whitney Jones, M.D., a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Louisville in Kentucky.
Even second-degree relatives – aunts, uncles, grandparents, half-siblings – can increase your risk, he says.
For example, if your mom got colon cancer at 45, you should be screened for the first time at 35.
"You should be tested 10 years before the age your relative got colon cancer, or at 40, whichever comes first," says Richard Desi, M.D., a gastroenterologist at the Institute for Digestive Health and Liver Disease at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.
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