Nine of 10 in IBD Community Support Predictive Testing, Prevention Strategies

MONDAY, Feb. 9, 2026 (HealthDay News) — There is strong interest in screening and prevention treatments for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) among patients and their family members, according to a study published online Feb. 3 in Crohn”s & Colitis 360.

Mary Harkins-Schwarz, M.P.H., from the Crohn”s & Colitis Foundation in New York City, and colleagues conducted a survey to understand patient and family members’ views on IBD prevention. The analysis included responses from 1,545 participants.

The researchers found that most respondents (93 percent) would be interested in taking a test to predict their risk or their family’s risk for developing IBD in the future. Similarly, nearly all respondents were interested in taking preventative treatment to prevent IBD, with 40 percent expressing an unconditional interest in the treatment and 59 percent saying it would be dependent on the risks and effectiveness of the treatment. Relationship to IBD (e.g., having IBD, first-degree relative of someone with IBD, or parent of someone with IBD) was not significantly associated with the proportion of patients who were willing to take a test or prevention treatment.

“These findings offer a critical translational signal: if noninvasive tests and prevention strategies — particularly lifestyle-based interventions — are developed and rigorously evaluated, there is a high likelihood they will be acceptable to the very populations at greatest risk for IBD,” senior author Alan Moss, M.D., also from the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation, said in a statement.

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