One of the important bits of information was that both his father and biological grandfather died of colon cancer. His father at age 57, grandfather at age 30. That scared the crap out of him, and his next phone call was to schedule a doctor's appointment. Doc asked when was the father diagnosed so he called the stepmother again-- at age 52 when a tumor ruptured his colon. Therefore Iain should get colonoscopies starting at age 42 which is less than 5 years away. But the doc also explained how regular exams will get the polyps early before they can do any harm. So it was both alarming and reassuring.

Of course I reminded him that exercise, diet, and weight have a much stronger impact on risk of colon cancer than genetics!

I was reading up on risk factors and I didn't realize inflammatory bowel disease is also a risk factor. Guess I'm at risk too but I don't know if that means I'll be getting screened more frequently or at a younger age, like him.