My doctor found several small polyps in my colon while performing a test. He wants me to see him in two years for a more extensive test. Is it safe to wait that long?

-- Ellie

You probably had a sigmoidoscopy done, which only examines the lower part of the colon. The more extensive test your doctor is recommending for later is a colonoscopy, which looks at the entire colon (large bowel).

If your doctor biopsied these polyps and if they were benign, then it is probably safe to wait the two years he is recommending. If you have symptoms such as blood in your stool, or if you have a very strong family history of colon cancer -- or a combined family history of colon, breast and ovarian cancer -- then you may want to have testing done more often.

Recommendations for screening for colorectal cancer include testing for blood in the stool via rectal exam annually beginning at 40 and a screening sigmoidoscopy at age 50. Some recommend repeating the sigmoidoscopy one year later, then every three years thereafter if the first two tests were normal. Others recommend a full colonoscopy every three to five years after age 50. Again, family history and your personal risk factors, as well as any symptoms you may be experiencing, play into when screening should begin and how often it should be done.