Do Right- and Left-Sided Colonic Polyps Differ in Women Aged 60 or older?

Right- and left-sided colorectal cancers (CRCs) have different clinical presentations and prognosis. These tumors arise from premalignant lesions, usually polyps, that can be resected during colonoscopy exams. Here, we aimed to assess the influence of polyp location on endoscopic and histopathological characteristics in women aged 60 years or over. Single-center, retrospective study of 262 women aged ≥ 60 years with colonic polyps, examined at the University Hospital of Brasília, Brazil, from January 2019 to December 2023. All polyps found were analyzed individually regarding its endoscopic and histopathological characteristics. The data for right- and left-sided polyps were compared. A total of 510 polyps were studied, 282 in the left colon (LC) and 228 in the right colon (RC). In terms of morphology, polyps were predominantly sessile on both sides of the colon, and pedunculated polyps were more frequently observed in the LC (p = 0.087). Most of the polyps were ≥ 5 mm on both sides (p = 0.901). Regarding histopathology, 73.2% of polyps in the RC were tubular adenomas, versus 38.7% in the LC. Serrated adenomas had a 3.5% rate of occurrence in the RC and 2.1% in the LC. A total of 47.9% in the LC were hyperplastic, and 14.5% in the RC (p < 0.001) were hyperplastic. The LC tended to be more associated with absence of dysplasia (p < 0.001). The RC was associated with tubular and serrated adenomas and with the presence of dysplasia, whereas the LC was associated with hyperplastic polyps.