GUT statement

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Bowel Cancer UK's statement in response to GUT 2011 press release 'Higher than expected proportion of "left sided" bowel cancers in screening programme'. 

Deborah Alsina, CEO, Bowel Cancer UK said: "It is extremely good news that the screening programme is saving lives from bowel cancer. As a higher proportion of cancers are being found in the left side of the bowel than predicted, the roll out of flexible sigmoidoscopy screening in the new year will help to save even more lives. However this does need to be rolled out quickly with a sustained focus on areas with low uptake of screening. Of course, early diagnosis is key to overcoming bowel cancer and we actively encourage everyone eligible to take part in screening, as this will give them the best chance of surviving the disease".