Bowel screening key to preventing deaths and reducing health inequalities
Tuesday 5 July 2022
New research carried out by the University of Sheffield has found that more than 11,000 bowel cancer deaths could be prevented by simply reinviting people to participate in screening.
The study, funded by Cancer Research UK and published today in Preventative Medicine, found that reinviting people to participate in screening every year until they return the home test kit, was the most cost-effective way to increase participation – with 13.6% more people predicted to return their home test kit in the first year.
In England, everyone aged 60 to74 who is registered with a GP is automatically sent a faecal immunochemical test (FIT) every two years. The programme is expanding to include everyone aged 50-59 years. This is happening gradually over four years and has started with 56 and 58-year-olds, so you may get a test before you're 60. The test looks for traces of blood in your poo, which can be a sign of bowel cancer or polyps – small growths in the bowel that may turn into cancer over time.
The study also found that annual re-invitation could also help combat health inequalities – as people from more deprived communities are currently less likely to complete the tests and benefit from early diagnosis screening. This contributes to increased bowel cancer deaths among people who are more deprived.
Genevieve Edwards, Chief Executive at Bowel Cancer UK, says: "This research from Cancer Research UK has huge potential to increase screening uptake and help diagnose bowel cancers earlier when they're more easily treated. In particular, making this simple, affordable change to the bowel screening programme appears to increase uptake among people from the most deprived communities, which will help reduce health inequalities.
"We know that once someone has taken part in bowel cancer screening, they're more likely to do so again. So it will also be vital to increase investment in endoscopy and pathology staff and equipment, to match an increase in demand for prompt follow-up tests."
- Read more about the importance of bowel screening
- Find out more about our campaign to tackle the growing endoscopy capacity crisis
- Knowing the symptoms of bowel cancer could save your life
The Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) in England (left) and Scotland (right). Images courtesy of Public Health England and NHS Health Scotland.