How accurate is Cologuard?
Last updated September 3, 2026.
Cologuard is an FDA-approved, legitimate screening tool with two known limits. It catches most colorectal cancers by combining DNA markers with blood detection. The limits: it produces more false positives than FIT, and it finds small precancerous polyps less reliably than a scope - and any positive result still requires a colonoscopy to sort out, so it never fully replaces one.
What to do
- Treat it as real screening. It is FDA-approved and CDC-recognized - not a wellness gadget.
- Expect some false alarms. A positive means colonoscopy, and many colonoscopies after Cologuard find nothing serious.
- Stay on the schedule. Stool DNA testing repeats on a set cycle - your doctor tracks the interval.
- Pick the test you will do. On-schedule home testing beats a perpetually postponed colonoscopy.
Related questions
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- Can I do a colon cancer screening at home?
- When should I get a colonoscopy?
- What happens at a colonoscopy?