| "TUESDAY, Feb. 20 (HealthDay News) -- More convenient and less invasive tests are needed in order to increase colorectal cancer screening rates in the United States, researchers say, and a type of fecal sampling test may be ideal." "The fecal sampling test, called I-FOBT, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2001, but is used infrequently by doctors, said Dr. Thomas Imperiale, a professor of medicine in the Indiana University School of Medicine. His editorial on the subject is published in the Feb. 20 issue of the journal " ""In recent years, use of non-invasive screening has declined in favor of colonoscopy, but not everyone is willing to have a colonoscopy," Imperiale wrote." ""The new immunochemical fecal occult blood test, referred to as I-FOBT, is a significant improvement over the older guaiac-based version," he said. "The newer fecal test has the potential to substantially increase screening rates for colorectal cancer, taking us back to the future in a sense."" "I-FOBT uses antibodies to detect human blood in stool. Older fecal sampling tests can't differentiate between blood from the digestive tract and blood from the diet." "The superior detection ability of I-FOBT eliminates the need for people
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