Screening all cases of incident colorectal cancer in Australia for Lynch syndrome would be cost-effective, and save about 80 deaths a year, according to the most comprehensive analysis to date.

The results extend the findings of two earlier studies, including one by the Department of Health’s Medical Service Advisory Committee (MSAC), that show such screening can be cost-effective, the authors of the new study write in the MJA.

Screening CRC patients for Lynch syndrome is already carried out in some other countries, including the UK, they note.

The team, led by Professor Karen Canfell from UNSW Sydney and the Cancer Council NSW, has modelled seven different strategies for universal testing of incident colorectal cancers and compared their cost-effectiveness and life-years saved with carrying out no testing at all.