Fecal Occult Blood

Blood in the stool is a sign of bleeding in the digestive tract. This could indicate cancer, polyps, hemorrhoids, diverticulosis, or inflammatory bowel disease, also called colitis.

– Assess for cause of bleeding (i.e., Ulcers, polyps, diverticulitis, IBD, colorectal cancer, etc.)

– One positive test warrants further investigation. The fecal occult blood test can only detect the presence or absence of blood — it doesn’t indicate potential sources of bleeding.

– Occult blood in the stool may indicate colon cancer or polyps in the colon or rectum, though not all cancers or polyps bleed.

– Your test could show a positive result when you have no cancer (false-positive result) if you have bleeding from other sources, such as a stomach ulcer, hemorrhoid, or even blood swallowed from your mouth or your nose.

– You may need additional testing, such as a colonoscopy, to locate the source of the bleeding.

Fecal occult blood testing (FOBT) checks stool samples for hidden (occult) blood loss from the mouth to the colon.