This amount reflects total healthcare system costs for initial breast, cervical, colorectal, lung and prostate cancer screening. The largest share of the total cost was CRC screenings via colonoscopy, accounting for $23.7 billion, or 55% of the total. All other CRC screenings combined accounted for another $3.8 billion.
Significantly, the study also found that the $43.2 billion total was less than the reported cost of cancer treatment within the first 12 months after diagnosis, an indication of the cost-effectiveness of early screening, according to the study.
