Judge Judy Rules In Favor Of Colon Cancer Screenings

Judge Judy Sheindlin, known for her no-nonsense style of judgment on her popular, self-titled television series, has found colon cancer guilty and stresses the importance of getting screened for the disease early. In a YouTube video produced by the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance in February 2010, the judge discussed her personal experience with colon cancer and why early screening is critical.

“My mother was my age when she died of colon cancer,” Sheindlin, now 67, said in the video. “She didn’t get to see me become a judge. She didn’t get to see five wonderful great-grandchildren. Her colon cancer wasn’t detected early.”

Colon cancer is one disease that is 90 percent treatable if caught early, a painful lesson for Sheindlin. "We come from a family where unless you're at death's door, you don't go to the doctor," she told USA Today in 2002. "Even I didn't see the doctor too much, believing, 'if you don't bother it, it won't bother you.'"

Since her mother’s death, Sheindlin’s way of thinking has changed, and she has undergone several colon cancer screenings. Now she is one of several celebrities campaigning for early screenings. Other activists include reality TV star Sharon Osbourne, CBS Evening News host Katie Couric and CBS Early Show anchor Harry Smith. Couric and Smith went so far as to televise their colonoscopy experiences to demonstrate how easy and painless the procedure is.

Regular colon cancer screenings are suggested for anyone age 50 and older. To learn more about colon cancer, click here.