Our much-loved supporter, George Alagiah OBE, has died
Monday 24 July 2023
We're deeply saddened to hear our supporter George Alagiah OBE has died. Our deepest sympathies are with his family and everyone who knew and loved him.
Since he shared the news of his diagnosis in 2014, George, one of the BBC's most iconic and well-loved broadcasters, has been a huge advocate of our work. He supported our campaign calling on the NHS to lower the bowel cancer screening age to 50, shared his experience of the disease to raise lifesaving awareness of the symptoms, as well as speaking to our wonderful supporters about living with advanced bowel cancer at events that have raised thousands of pounds for the charity.
Most recently, he hosted our podcast – he gave not only his time but his phenomenal broadcasting skills, his incredible warmth and his personal insight into living with the disease.
We'll never forget how much of his precious time he gave to the charity and the kindness he showed to our supporters during a very difficult time in his life.
Bowel cancer is the UK's fourth most common cancer, and the second biggest cancer killer but it doesn't have to be this way. It's treatable if diagnosed early and by going straight to your GP it's possible to rule out bowel cancer first and fast.
Key symptoms to look out for include bleeding from your bottom, blood in your poo, a persistent and unexplained change in bowel habits, unexplained weight loss, extreme tiredness for no obvious reason and a pain or lump in your tummy. Most people with these don't have bowel cancer, but if you experience one or more of them, you should visit your doctor straight away.
They will want to see you and may ask you to do a Faecal Immunochemical Test, known as FIT, at home. It's very easy to do and will help your GP to decide whether your symptoms need further investigation.
Pictured above: George Alagiah
Photo credit: Ken Jack via Getty Images