ADULTS in Worcestershire aged 60 or over are being urged to take advantage of the local bowel cancer screening programme in a bid to reduce the number of serious cases of the disease in the county.

It is now 10 years since screening was introduced in England and it has helped to detect more than 25,000 cases of bowel cancer and 81,000 advanced adenomas, which could have become cancerous, in that time – early diagnosis give patients a better chance of successful treatment and survival.

Deborah Alsina, chief executive of the charity Bowel Cancer UK, said: “Since bowel cancer screening was first introduced to the UK 10 years ago, it has had a huge impact on the outcome for patients as it is both preventing cancer from developing and detecting it earlier when easier to treat.

“I am regularly told by patients detected through screening how grateful they are that they took the test because, in their view, it has saved their life.”

Although the screening programme gives people a better chance to detect and beat bowel cancer, many people do not take advantage of it. The national average for take up in England is 58 per cent while in some areas it drops as low as 33 per cent. In Worcestershire and Herefordshire the screening take up figure is 60 per cent – higher than the national level. So far the screening has shown 3,700 abnormal results, detected 5,396 polyps and 413 cases of cancer.

Herefordshire and Worcestershire Bowel Cancer Screening Programme clinical director Stephen Lake said: “We’re very pleased to be a part of the wider national programme and are joining the celebrations of the 10th anniversary of the Bowel Cancer Screening programme in England.

“The programme has been going in Herefordshire and Worcestershire for just under seven years and in that time we’ve distributed more than 433,000 test kits. The uptake for our screening centre is higher than the national average at 60per cent.

“Abnormal test kit results have been demonstrated in 3,700 subjects and 4,559 diagnostic investigations have been undertaken through the endoscopy and radiology units in both counties.

“These investigations have found 5,396 pre-cancerous polyps and in addition, 413 bowel cancers have been detected and treated.

The Government has just announced it is to introduce a simpler and more accurate testing kit for people to use at home, which is expected to increase the uptake. “This provides us with a very real opportunity to save more lives in the future,” said Mrs Alsina.

Mr Lake added: “We were also pleased to be part of the pilot study for the new, more sensitive and easier to use test kit, which we believe will be introduced into the programme early next year.”

For more information on screening visit http://www.worcsacute.nhs.uk/services-a-z/cancer-services/getting-diagnosed/screening/; www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk/about-bowel-cancer/screening/; http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Cancer-of-the-colon-rectum-or-bowel/Pages/Screeningforbowelcancer.aspx and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/bowel-cancer-screening-programme-overview

Paul Fisher’s story

Paul Fisher from Redditch was 45 and too young to be included in the bowel cancer screening programme when he was diagnosed with the disease. Only people aged 60 to 75 are eligible for the scheme.

But, having experienced the cancer and complications as a result of the disease and the surgery required to deal with it, he stresses how important it is for people to take up the offer of screening.

He said: “In 2007 I was experiencing issues when going to the toilet and was finding it harder to go the longer I left it. I visited my GP and he suggested an X-Ray of the bowel.”

The GP said it could be diverticular disease, when pockets develop in the lining of the intestine, or diverticulitis, which is when they become infected.

“I went for the X-ray and they found a 10cm tumour,” said Paul. “The next thing was to have the tumour tested and 10 days later I was called in to have the results. This was very worrying when I was told it was cancerous.

“I went home and started to bleed even though I had not been touched for 10 days and this was my body going into shock.”

He said the tumour bled aggressively so he went to A&E at the hospital where he was admitted to a ward and stayed for four days. He bled 17 times and eventually a decision was agreed to inject the tumour with adrenaline to try and stop the bleed.

“This worked but I was weakened by the trauma of this. I went home for a week to regain my strength to then have major surgery the following week.”

He was prepped for surgery but the epidural hit his nerve endings and had to be aborted so he had to have a different anaesthetic. Paul lost a third of his bowel when the tumour was removed.

“I woke four days later having been on life support as I never recovered from the operation – I managed to get pneumonia and my lung collapsed. I was taken off a ventilator a bit at a time and recovered. I then took three months to regain my strength and have had annual checks.”

Paul recovered from the trauma of the cancer and treatment but he urges anyone eligible for the screening programme to take the opportunity. In fact 98 per cent of the tests come back negative and just two per cent show an abnormal result.

They are referred for further investigation and usually offered a colonoscopy. Bowel cancer screening aims to detect bowel cancer at an early stage (in people with no symptoms) when treatment is more likely to be effective. Screening can also detect polyps. These are not cancers, but may develop into cancers over time. They can easily be removed, reducing the risk of bowel cancer developing.

Currently people over 75 can request a screening kit by calling the telephone helpline 0800 707 6060.

Paul added: “I am very grateful to my GP, surgeon, and all the fantastic wonderful staff at the Alexandra Hospital who did so much to make this life changing experience end positively. Going through this journey allowed me to understand how we can avoid what could have been a far worse outcome.”

• Bowel cancer is the four most common cancer in the UK and the second biggest cancer killer. More than 41,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with it every year.

• Bowel cancer is treatable and curable – especially if detected early.

• Symptoms of bowel cancer include bleeding from the bottom or blood in poo; a change in bowel habits lasting three weeks or more; extreme tiredness; unexplained weight loss; a pain or lump in the tummy.