I am 72. I had a colonoscopy at 56 and 62 - no issues. It was quick and aside from the prep work the day before, really effortless. It yielded a polyp or two which were removed & biopsied negative.

For the past 3 yrs my PCP has simply mailed me one of those Fecal Immunochemical Tests (iFOBT). Both my PCP and my GI claim that these do well in lieu of a colonoscopy given that my first two yielded nothing serious. They tell you to get one every 10 yrs so I am due, but both docs are fine with my doing this instead.

I'm sorry you've heard of so many unfortunate circumstances with colonoscopies. I don't know that that is the norm. It is the anesthesia that I hate, even though they don't give you that much for very long.

If your doc is fine with the mail in iFOBT, I'd opt for that. Unless you have family history or some kind of gut issues. You are still very young. Doctors just like to cover their butt and not be remiss by not recommending procedures.