About 1 in 20 women and 1 in 18 men develop bowel cancer (also known as colorectal cancer) in their lifetimes. More than 8 out of 10 bowel cancers are diagnosed in people over the age of 60. The risk of bowel cancer increases with age and 97% of people diagnosed are over 50, but bowel cancer can take years to develop.

Bowel cancer affects the lower part of your digestive system, the colon (colon or large bowel cancer) and the rectum (rectal cancer). For many people, the risk of bowel cancer can be reduced with lifestyle changes.

Detection

Who should be tested?

If you are aged 60-69, and registered with a GP, you should automatically be sent a free kit to help detect bowel cancer early. If you are 70 or over call 0800 707 60 60 to ask for a free kit. Screening should take place every 2 years.

What does it involve?

You’ll be sent a ‘faecal occult blood test’ to carry out at home and return by post. The kits are then sent off to a laboratory to be checked for hidden (occult) blood in the stools, which could mean bowel cancer.

The test involves smearing tiny samples from three stools (bowel motions) on to a special card. You then seal the test and return it to the screening centre.

You’ll be sent a letter when your results have been processed. This will usually say your sample was normal. If the result is unclear, you'll be asked to complete another test kit. If your result is abnormal, you'll be invited for further investigation.

This will usually be a colonoscopy, a procedure where a colonoscope (a thin flexible tube with a tiny camera on the end) is passed into your rectum and guided around the large bowel, so doctors can view your bowel lining. Only around two in every 100 people who are screened will have an abnormal result and are advised to consider a colonoscopy.

 

If you are worried about a specific problem, symptom or the risks of bowel cancer, then you should talk to your GP.