Health Screening Guidelines, Men Ages 65 and Older

Screening tests and health counseling are a key part of managing your health. A screening test is done to find disorders or diseases in people who don't have any symptoms. Screening tests are not used to diagnose. They are used to find out if more testing is needed. The goal may be to find a disease early so it can be treated with more success. Or the goal may be to find a disease early so you can make lifestyle changes. You may need regular checkups to help you reduce your risk of disease.

Below are guidelines for men ages 65 and older. Talk with your healthcare provider. Make sure you’re up-to-date on what you need.

Screening

Who needs it

How often

Abdominal aortic aneurysm

Men ages 65 to 75 who have ever smoked. Men in this age group who have never smoked could still be screened. This depends on their family history or other risk factors they may have.

1-time ultrasound

Unhealthy alcohol use

All men in this age group

At routine exams

Blood pressure

All men in this age group

Once a year if your blood pressure is normal. Normal blood pressure is less than 120/80 mm Hg. If your blood pressure is higher than this, follow the advice of your healthcare provider.

Colorectal cancer

All men at average risk in this age group through age 75. For men ages 76 to 85, ask your healthcare provider if you need to keep screening. For men older than 85, screening is not advised.

Talk with your healthcare provider about which test below is right for you:

Colonoscopy every 10 years
Flexible sigmoidoscopy every 5 years (or every 10 years with yearly fecal immunochemical test (FIT) stool test)
CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy) every 5 years
Yearly fecal occult blood test
Yearly FIT
Stool DNA test every 1 to 3 years

If you have a test that is not a colonoscopy and have an abnormal test result, you will need a colonoscopy.

You may need to be screened more or less often. This is based on personal or family health history. Talk with your healthcare provider.

Depression

All men in this age group

At routine exams

Type 2 diabetes or prediabetes

All men up to age 70 who are overweight or obese

At least every 3 years (yearly if your blood sugar has already begun to rise)

Type 2 diabetes

All men with prediabetes

Every year

Hepatitis C

All men ages 18 to 79

At routine exams. Ask your healthcare provider about how often you need to be screened based on your risk factors.

High cholesterol or triglycerides

All men in this age group

At least every 5 years. Ask your healthcare provider about your risk factors.

HIV

Men at higher risk of infection

At routine exams. Talk with your healthcare provider.

Lung cancer

Men between the ages 50 and 80 who are in fairly good health and who:

Smoke or quit in the past 15 years
Have a 20-pack per year smoking history (1 pack a day for 20 years or 2 packs a day for 10 years)

Expert groups vary in their advice. Talk with your healthcare provider.

Yearly lung cancer screening with low-dose CT scan (LDCT). Talk with your healthcare provider about your risk factors.

Obesity

All men in this age group

At yearly routine exams

Prostate cancer

All men in this age group, talk to your healthcare provider about the risks and benefits of a digital rectal exam (DRE) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening1

At routine exams, if you decide to be tested

Syphilis

Men at higher risk of infection

At routine exams. Talk with your healthcare provider.

Tuberculosis

Men at higher risk of infection

Talk with your healthcare provider

Vision

All men in this age group

Every 1 to 2 years. If you have a chronic health condition, ask your healthcare provider if you need exams more often.

Health counseling

Who needs it