Don't put it off: If you are 45, it's time to get screened for colon cancer

Radiation oncologist David Bryant, MD, who serves Ascension Via Christi, had never had a colonoscopy.

The 51-year-old Wichitan was a year past the recommended colon cancer screening age so he needed to get his done, but kept finding reasons to put it off.

Then the tragic death of actor Chadwick Boseman convinced David that it was time to schedule his procedure.

Being a great fan, says David, who had even donned a Black Panther costume the Halloween prior to Boseman's death, "It drove me to tears to know that he died and suffered from this cancer."

That prompted him to get past his feeling of vulnerability and fears and schedule his colonoscopy with Noel Sanchez, MD, at Ascension Medical Group Founders Circle.

To encourage others, David agreed to have his experience captured on video and, together with Lisa Schmidt, a nurse navigator at the Ascension Via Christi Cancer Center, share why it is particularly important that African American males get screened.

It's a cancer, Schmidt says, that is highly treatable when caught early and even potentially prevented when polyps are found and removed before they have the chance to become cancerous.

Watch Dr. Bryant's first colonoscopy experience here.