Clinical Effectiveness of Faecal Immunochemical Test in the Early Detection of Colorectal Cancer—An Umbrella Review

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a commonly occurring neoplasm causing significant decrease in quality of life as well as premature death. Due to this fact, screening is crucial, as the prognosis is dependent on disease advancement. There are several screening tests available for this neoplasm. One of the most promising and increasingly utilised is the FIT (faecal immunochemical test). The aim of our umbrella review was to analyse available data regarding the efficacy of the test. In this review, secondary studies concerning parameters such as specificity and sensitivity have been included. The results of this study confirm the high usefulness of the FIT in early CRC detection. The authors were able to conclude that FIT is an effective and possible to introduce screening test, which may be especially significant regarding systemic changes in countries where CRC screening had been conducted using different methods. ABSTRACT: Introduction: The colorectal cancer prognosis depends on the stage of the neoplasm; therefore, its early detection plays an important role. The aim of the study is evaluation of the sensitivity, specificity, and clinical effectiveness of the faecal immunochemical test in the early colorectal cancer detection. Methods: The clinical analysis was based on the results of the studies included in a systematic review conducted in accordance with the Cochrane Collaboration guidelines. The following medical information sources were searched: Medline (via PubMed), Embase (via Ovid), The Cochrane Library. Results: From 241 citations, 13 studies were included in this review. All included studies had a low risk of bias. The faecal immunochemical test is highly specific in all analysed populations ranging from 85% to 97%. In most of the found studies, sensitivity is over 75%. The faecal immunochemical test screening also determines a reduction in death (10–59%) due to colorectal cancer. Conclusions: The faecal immunochemical test is an effective and cost-effective method of conducting population-wide colorectal cancer screening. It is an alternative or complementary to other screening tests, including colonoscopy.