University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) is helping to promote the first major national bowel cancer public awareness campaign in England.
Running throughout February and March, the initiative is to raise public awareness of the early symptoms of bowel cancer and encourage people with symptoms to visit their GP.
The ‘Be Clear on Cancer’ campaign aims to achieve an earlier diagnosis in patients and increase their chances of bowel cancer being successfully treated. It forms part of the Department of Health’s plans to improve England’s cancer survival rates in comparison with Western European countries.
Staff based at Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal are at the forefront of developing the screening initiative, having been responsible for screening over 100,000 people and detecting 203 bowel cancer cases since the opening of the Cumbria and Morecambe Bay Bowel Cancer screening centre in 2008.
The service has also performed more than 2,000 colonoscopies, with about half of these patients benefiting from the removal of polyps long before they have the chance to develop into bowel cancer.
Colin Brown, Clinical Director, Cumbria and Morecambe Bay Bowel Cancer screening centre, said: “Sometimes bowel problems and symptoms can seem a bit embarrassing but we encourage anyone affected to discuss their concerns with their GP at an early stage and not ignore symptoms for many months or years.
“Anyone over 40 years of age who has experienced rectal bleeding, changes in bowel habit or looser bowels or diarrhoea lasting more than six weeks should see their GP. It gives us a much better chance of spotting cancer earlier.
“Everyone registered with a GP and aged between 60 and 75 years will be invited to check their stools for blood on a two yearly basis. I would strongly advise anyone receiving this invitation to do the test. Most people have a negative and reassuring result, but over the last four years we have performed over 2,000 colonoscopy tests and detected over 200 bowel cancers, with about half of these at an early stage. This gives patients a much better chance of survival.”
Bowel cancer can be successfully treated in over 90% of cases if it is diagnosed at an early stage, but it is still the second most common cause of cancer deaths in the UK. Early identification minimises the chance of growth and spread, so the national awareness campaign has been warmly welcomed.
Peter Dyer, Medical Director, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Understanding the symptoms of bowel cancer is seen as a major contributor to early detection rates. People are being encouraged to take a much more prominent role in identifying symptoms earlier and working with their GPs to establish whether they are at risk.
“As its symptoms are often attributed to other causes, bowel cancer has historically not been easy to diagnose until well advanced, especially where symptoms differ from person to person.
“Early diagnosis makes a huge difference to survival chances. If treatment is offered early, surgical procedures are less complex, risk of cancer spread is reduced and long term survival rates are much higher.
“Strong awareness raising campaigns play a significant role in getting people who are worried about symptoms to visit their GPs more quickly.”
It is estimated that 1,700 deaths from bowel cancer could be avoided every year if England’s cancer survival rates matched the best in Europe.
Bowel cancer screening, for both men and women, has been shown to reduce the death rate from bowel cancer by 16% amongst those accepting the invitation for screening. The latest campaign encourages the targeted 60-75 year age group to carry out a self-test at home so that any signs of bowel cancer can be detected and treated early.
The early symptoms for bowel cancer are very similar to other, much less serious problems with the bowel. It’s therefore important for people to be aware of what is normal for them, but quickly recognise any unusual changes and act quickly to get them investigated by their GP.
VIEW ALL NEWS
Further information
For further press information please contact Louise Fleming on 01539 716685
or e-mail louise.fleming@mbht.nhs.uk
