NHS urges people to test for bowel cancer

The NHS has urged those eligible to use that at-home bowel cancer testing kits.

A national campaign will run across TV, radio, video-on-demand and social media and aims to increase uptake of the home testing kit and make sure that more people are diagnosed earlier with bowel cancer.

The campaign will show how quick and convenient it is to carry out the test.

The latest statistics show that the proportion of people choosing to complete the test is at 70.3 per cent, the highest on record.

NHS director of vaccinations and dcreening Steve Russell said: “Screening is one of the best ways to diagnose bowel cancer early, or in some cases prevent it from developing in the first place, so we want more people to do it; and stop this disease in its tracks.

“The FIT kit offers eligible people a chance to quickly and safely complete a test for bowel cancer at home; and ensure that more cases are detected earlier.

“If you’re sent the kit, help yourself by remembering to complete it. Put it by the loo. Don’t put it off.

“If you haven’t taken a test, but are experiencing bowel cancer symptoms, such as blood in your poo or severe stomach pain, no matter your age, you should speak to your GP as soon as possible.”

More than half a million Faecal Immunochemical Test kits (FIT) are sent out each month. The kit detects blood in poo.

Those aged 60-74 who are registered with a GP and live in England are set a test every two year. The programme is being extended to 56 and 58 years olds.

Dr Julie Sharp, head of health information at Cancer Research UK, said: “We hope this campaign helps highlight the importance of the bowel cancer screening programme and how easy the kit is to do. The test, for people without symptoms, now only requires one tiny sample of poo, and can spot hidden traces of blood that could be a sign of cancer. Finding cancer at an early stage makes it much more treatable and we recommend people complete the kit.”

 

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