tci General Surgery Coding Alert - 2008 Issue 4

Reader Questions: If Cancer Is Verified, It's Not a Screening

Question: The surgeon performed colonoscopy "to examine the remainder of the colon" on a patient who was recently diagnosed with rectal cancer by another physician. He is not a Medicare patient. Should I use a diagnosis of V76.51 (Special screening for malignant neoplasms of the colon) followed by 154.1? Or should I just code for the rectal cancer? Washington Subscriber Answer: If the other physician established that the patient has rectal cancer and the patient has not completed treatment to remove the cancer, you should use the rectal cancer diagnosis (154.1, Malignant neoplasm of rectum, rectosigmoid...

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