Our participants
Each and every study participant, whether they have had colorectal cancer or not, is a unique individual with a unique history and set of characteristics that evolves over time. No one else can substitute for your unique characteristics. Further, since the disease can develop in several members of a family, studying characteristics of families with and without colorectal cancer will provide important clues about why it occurs.
Your continued contributions to this research will make a difference that will help future generations.
Longitudinal studies, like the Colon Cancer Family Registry, extend beyond a single moment in time and take place over an extended period of time. Key information is collected from study participants repeatedly at routine intervals, in our case in 5-year intervals. This repeated data collection over time allows us to compile a more complete and accurate understanding of factors, that alone or in combination, may be responsible for increasing or decreasing one’s risk of developing colorectal cancer. In turn, we hope to learn better ways to prevent, screen for, and treat colorectal cancer in the future.