NCT02078804

Brief Summary

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major cause of death in Sweden. There are approximately 6000 new cases each year in Sweden and the disease specific mortality is more than 40%. There risk is about 1% to develop CRC between 60-70 years of age making 60-year olds a suitable target population for colorectal cancer screening. The Swedish ministry of health and social affairs proposed a national study on the efficiency of colorectal cancer screening in the Swedish population regarding mortality, but also what screening method to be used. Eighteen participating counties of Sweden now fund the study to be launched in 2014. From the Register of the total population individuals 59-62 years of age will be randomized and invited by mail to screening. Thirty- thousand five hundred individuals will be invited to primary colonoscopy and 60 000 individuals will be invited to high sensitive FIT (approximately 10% positive) and if positive to a subsequent follow-up colonoscopy. If test negative a second round of FIT will be asked for in two years. In total 183 000 randomized individuals will not be invited to screening, but followed in the Swedish Cancer register and serve as controls. The inclusion period I set to five years (five years with the second round of FIT) generating approximately 5 000 colonoscopies yearly the first three years and 1200 year four and five at a compliance rate of 35% in the colonoscopy arm and 50% in the FIT arm. Follow-up time is set to 15 years with the primary endpoint disease specific mortality, but also incidence. Secondary outcomes by others to be studied are in short quality assurance variables of colonoscopy, participants and non-participants experiences of the invitation and the screening procedure, health economy measures of the CRC-screening study and when implemented in clinical care.

Trial Health

83
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
278,000

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable colorectal-cancer

Timeline
57mo left

Started Mar 2014

Longer than P75 for not_applicable colorectal-cancer

Status
active not recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Progress72%
Mar 2014Dec 2030

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

February 11, 2014

Completed
18 days until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

March 1, 2014

Completed
4 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

March 5, 2014

Completed
6.7 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

October 31, 2020

Completed
10.2 years until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

December 31, 2030

Expected
Last Updated

June 17, 2025

Status Verified

June 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

6.7 years

First QC Date

February 11, 2014

Last Update Submit

June 12, 2025

Conditions

Keywords

Colorectal cancerMortalityIncidenceScreeningHealth-economy

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Mortality from colorectal cancer in the Swedish population.

    15 years follow-up

Secondary Outcomes (9)

  • Incidence of colorectal cancer in the Swedish population.

    15 years follow-up

  • To study compliance with the screening program (read study) and what factors are of importance for the adherence rate.

    1-5 years

  • To study health economy and costs for colorectal cancer screening.

    1-20 years

  • To study the emotional impact of screening on participants and non-participants including eventual change in lifestyle after invitation and/or participation.

    1-5 years

  • To study quality control aspects and side effects of screening with colonoscopy.

    1-5 years

  • +4 more secondary outcomes

Study Arms (3)

Colonoscopy

EXPERIMENTAL

20 000 subjects will be invited to an once-only colonoscopy.

Procedure: Colonoscopy

FIT for occult blood

EXPERIMENTAL

60 000 persons will be invited to take a fecal test for hemoglobin year 1 and year 3. If test-positive, they will be referred to colonoscopy.

Procedure: Colonoscopy

Controls

NO INTERVENTION

120 000 matched persons will be identified in the Swedish Register of the total population and will be used as controls.

Interventions

ColonoscopyPROCEDURE

20 000 individuals will be randomised to a primary screening colonoscopy and 60 000 to take a feces test for occult blood (FIT) and if positive (10% of individuals) they will be offered a follow-up colonoscopy.

ColonoscopyFIT for occult blood

Eligibility Criteria

Age59 Years - 62 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

  • People 59-62 years old living in Sweden randomized and identified through the Register of the total population.

You may not qualify if:

  • Residents of the counties of Stockholm, Gotland and Västernorrland, individuals with diagnosed with colorectal cancer and/or anal cancer, and individuals randomized to be included in the ongoing NordICC-trial.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Related Publications (28)

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    BACKGROUND
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    PMID: 7486484BACKGROUND
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    PMID: 10365903BACKGROUND
  • Armitage N. Screening for cancer. In: Morris D, Kearsley, J, Williams, C, editor. Cancer: a comprehensive clnical guide. pp 9-20. U.K.: Taylor and Francis Ltd 1997.

    BACKGROUND
  • Mandel JS, Bond JH, Church TR, Snover DC, Bradley GM, Schuman LM, Ederer F. Reducing mortality from colorectal cancer by screening for fecal occult blood. Minnesota Colon Cancer Control Study. N Engl J Med. 1993 May 13;328(19):1365-71. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199305133281901.

    PMID: 8474513BACKGROUND
  • Kronborg O, Fenger C, Olsen J, Jorgensen OD, Sondergaard O. Randomised study of screening for colorectal cancer with faecal-occult-blood test. Lancet. 1996 Nov 30;348(9040):1467-71. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(96)03430-7.

    PMID: 8942774BACKGROUND
  • Hardcastle JD, Chamberlain JO, Robinson MH, Moss SM, Amar SS, Balfour TW, James PD, Mangham CM. Randomised controlled trial of faecal-occult-blood screening for colorectal cancer. Lancet. 1996 Nov 30;348(9040):1472-7. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(96)03386-7.

    PMID: 8942775BACKGROUND
  • Lindholm E, Brevinge H, Haglind E. Survival benefit in a randomized clinical trial of faecal occult blood screening for colorectal cancer. Br J Surg. 2008 Aug;95(8):1029-36. doi: 10.1002/bjs.6136.

    PMID: 18563785BACKGROUND
  • Atkin WS, Cook CF, Cuzick J, Edwards R, Northover JM, Wardle J; UK Flexible Sigmoidoscopy Screening Trial Investigators. Single flexible sigmoidoscopy screening to prevent colorectal cancer: baseline findings of a UK multicentre randomised trial. Lancet. 2002 Apr 13;359(9314):1291-300. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(02)08268-5.

    PMID: 11965274BACKGROUND
  • Segnan N, Senore C, Andreoni B, Aste H, Bonelli L, Crosta C, Ferraris R, Gasperoni S, Penna A, Risio M, Rossini FP, Sciallero S, Zappa M, Atkin WS; SCORE Working Group--Italy. Baseline findings of the Italian multicenter randomized controlled trial of "once-only sigmoidoscopy"--SCORE. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2002 Dec 4;94(23):1763-72. doi: 10.1093/jnci/94.23.1763.

    PMID: 12464648BACKGROUND
  • Schoen RE, Pinsky PF, Weissfeld JL, Yokochi LA, Church T, Laiyemo AO, Bresalier R, Andriole GL, Buys SS, Crawford ED, Fouad MN, Isaacs C, Johnson CC, Reding DJ, O'Brien B, Carrick DM, Wright P, Riley TL, Purdue MP, Izmirlian G, Kramer BS, Miller AB, Gohagan JK, Prorok PC, Berg CD; PLCO Project Team. Colorectal-cancer incidence and mortality with screening flexible sigmoidoscopy. N Engl J Med. 2012 Jun 21;366(25):2345-57. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1114635. Epub 2012 May 21.

    PMID: 22612596BACKGROUND
  • Register of the total population: https://http://www.skatteverket.se/download/18.2b543913a42158acf80003761/1386594730871/Allm%C3%A4nBeskrivning.pdf: Swedish tax agency; [cited 2014 February].

    BACKGROUND
  • von Karsa L, Patnick J, Segnan N. European guidelines for quality assurance in colorectal cancer screening and diagnosis. First Edition--Executive summary. Endoscopy. 2012 Sep;44 Suppl 3:SE1-8. doi: 10.1055/s-0032-1309822. Epub 2012 Sep 25.

    PMID: 23012113BACKGROUND
  • Rembacken B, Hassan C, Riemann JF, Chilton A, Rutter M, Dumonceau JM, Omar M, Ponchon T. Quality in screening colonoscopy: position statement of the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE). Endoscopy. 2012 Oct;44(10):957-68. doi: 10.1055/s-0032-1325686. Epub 2012 Sep 17. No abstract available.

    PMID: 22987217BACKGROUND
  • Patient register: http://www.socialstyrelsen.se/register/halsodataregister/patientregistret/inenglish: National Board of Health and Welfare; [cited 2014 February].

    BACKGROUND
  • Causes of Death register: http://www.socialstyrelsen.se/register/dodsorsaksregistret: National Board of Health and Welfare; [cited 2014 February].

    BACKGROUND
  • Sekiguchi M, Westerberg M, Lowbeer C, Blom J, Forsberg A. First-Round Fecal Immunochemical Test Concentration Predicts Colorectal Cancer and Advanced Neoplasia in Second-Round Screening. Am J Gastroenterol. 2025 Aug 25. doi: 10.14309/ajg.0000000000003738. Online ahead of print.

  • Westerberg M, Eriksson J, Metcalfe C, Lowbeer C, Ekbom A, Steele R, Holmberg L, Forsberg A. Colonoscopy findings after increasing two-stool faecal immunochemical test (FIT) cut-off: Cross-sectional analysis of the SCREESCO randomized trial. J Intern Med. 2024 Aug;296(2):187-199. doi: 10.1111/joim.13810. Epub 2024 Jun 6.

  • Bonander C, Westerberg M, Chauca Strand G, Forsberg A, Stromberg U. Colorectal cancer screening with fecal immunochemical testing or primary colonoscopy: inequities in diagnostic yield. JNCI Cancer Spectr. 2024 Apr 30;8(3):pkae043. doi: 10.1093/jncics/pkae043.

  • Westerberg M, Holmberg L, Ekbom A, Metcalfe C, Steele R, Forsberg A. The role of endoscopist adenoma detection rate in in sex differences in colonoscopy findings: cross-sectional analysis of the SCREESCO randomized controlled trial. Scand J Gastroenterol. 2024 Apr;59(4):503-511. doi: 10.1080/00365521.2023.2292480. Epub 2023 Dec 12.

  • Sekiguchi M, Westerberg M, Ekbom A, Hultcrantz R, Forsberg A. Detection rates of colorectal neoplasia during colonoscopies and their associated factors in the SCREESCO study. J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2022 Nov;37(11):2120-2130. doi: 10.1111/jgh.15990. Epub 2022 Sep 9.

  • Stromberg U, Bonander C, Westerberg M, Levin LA, Metcalfe C, Steele R, Holmberg L, Forsberg A, Hultcrantz R. Colorectal cancer screening with fecal immunochemical testing or primary colonoscopy: An analysis of health equity based on a randomised trial. EClinicalMedicine. 2022 Apr 16;47:101398. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101398. eCollection 2022 May.

  • Forsberg A, Westerberg M, Metcalfe C, Steele R, Blom J, Engstrand L, Fritzell K, Hellstrom M, Levin LA, Lowbeer C, Pischel A, Stromberg U, Tornberg S, Wengstrom Y, Ekbom A, Holmberg L, Hultcrantz R; SCREESCO investigators. Once-only colonoscopy or two rounds of faecal immunochemical testing 2 years apart for colorectal cancer screening (SCREESCO): preliminary report of a randomised controlled trial. Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2022 Jun;7(6):513-521. doi: 10.1016/S2468-1253(21)00473-8. Epub 2022 Mar 14.

  • Shaukat A, Kahi CJ, Burke CA, Rabeneck L, Sauer BG, Rex DK. ACG Clinical Guidelines: Colorectal Cancer Screening 2021. Am J Gastroenterol. 2021 Mar 1;116(3):458-479. doi: 10.14309/ajg.0000000000001122.

  • Wangmar J, von Vogelsang AC, Hultcrantz R, Fritzell K, Wengstrom Y, Jervaeus A. Are anxiety levels associated with the decision to participate in a Swedish colorectal cancer screening programme? A nationwide cross-sectional study. BMJ Open. 2018 Dec 22;8(12):e025109. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-025109.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Colorectal Neoplasms

Interventions

Colonoscopy

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Intestinal NeoplasmsGastrointestinal NeoplasmsDigestive System NeoplasmsNeoplasms by SiteNeoplasmsDigestive System DiseasesGastrointestinal DiseasesColonic DiseasesIntestinal DiseasesRectal Diseases

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Endoscopy, GastrointestinalEndoscopy, Digestive SystemDiagnostic Techniques, Digestive SystemDiagnostic Techniques and ProceduresDiagnosisEndoscopyDiagnostic Techniques, SurgicalDigestive System Surgical ProceduresSurgical Procedures, OperativeMinimally Invasive Surgical Procedures

Study Officials

  • Anna Forsberg, MD PhD

    Karolinska Institutet

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
NONE
Purpose
SCREENING
Intervention Model
FACTORIAL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Associate Professor

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

February 11, 2014

First Posted

March 5, 2014

Study Start

March 1, 2014

Primary Completion

October 31, 2020

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2030

Last Updated

June 17, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-06

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will not share