NHS
bowel cancer screening programme in England (60-69 year olds)
Scottish bowel cancer Screening Programme
(50-74 year olds)
About Faecal Occult Blood Testing (FOB)
Screening that is available to everyone
NHS
Bowel Cancer Screening Programme (60-69 years)
As promised, April 2006 has finally seen the Government's official commitment
to a national screening programme for bowel cancer, with the news that
funding (£10m) has been released for the first phase of the three
year initiative.
A programme of this scale will take time to be effectively implemented across the whole country. The Government initially set out a three year phased roll out which will see the whole of the eligible population (people aged between 60 and above) covered by the end of 2009.
It is now hoped that by Spring 2007 all of the 5 regional programme hubs will be established around the country and around 14 local screening centres (out of a total 90 - 100) will be operational. The first local screening centre to be opened will be in Wolverhampton.
Rosie Winterton, Health Minister, explains, "We have started the roll out slightly later than originally intended but have taken all the practical steps to prepare for the roll out and minimise the delay. This is an ambitious project and the bowel cancer screening programme is one of the first of its kind in the Europe."
Currently, the timings
and locations of screening centres have not yet been finalised. As this
process progresses, information will be made available on the NHS Screening
Programmes website at www.cancerscreening.nhs.uk
Scottish Bowel Cancer Screening Programme (50-74 years)
A Scottish Bowel Cancer Screening Programme will commence in March 2007. The programme will offer men and women aged 50 to 74 years a FOB test every two years.
The screening programme will be phased in gradually over a three year period giving Health Boards time to prepare and allocate resources. The programme will cost £19.5 million in its first three years of roll-out from 2007-08 to 2009-10. This funding will be met from existing NHS Board allocation increases.
Following the successful
pilot in NHS Tayside, Grampian and Fife, testing kits will be posted to
650,000 people in the target age range every year. These tests are completed
at home and are then returned for screening. Patients will receive results
within two weeks.
About Faecal Occult Blood Testing (FOB)
The faecal occult blood test (FOB test) detects small amounts of blood
in your faeces which you would not normally see or be aware of. (Faeces
are sometimes called stools or motions. Occult means 'unseen' or 'invisible'.)
The FOB test will
be sent by post to people in the target age group, and will be done in
the privacy of your own home. A small sample of faeces is smeared onto
a piece of card. You obtain a sample by using a small scrapper to scrape
some faeces off toilet tissue which you have just used after going to
the toilet.
The test kit is then returned by post to a laboratory where a chemical
is added to the sample on the card. If there is a change in colour after
adding the chemical, it indicates that some blood is present. You, and
your GP, will be notified of the result, and told if you are required
to go for further investigation.
FOB testing kits are
not available on the NHS until the programme
starts in April 2006, and only then in the first wave of areas who implement
the programme and for men and women aged 60 and over in those areas. The
NHS hope to be sending kits to people in their 60s in all areas of England
by 2009.
Screening
that is available to everyone
At the moment, the screening programme for bowel cancer only targets people
aged 60 and above. Whilst we agree this is a good start, we firmly believe
this should be extended to people from the age of 50. The screening programme
for Scotland beginning in 2007 will invite all people from this age group
and we will be keen to see the results and the effect on mortality.
Beating Bowel Cancer also stresses that anyone who has any symptoms (e.g. bleeding from the bottom, persistent, irregular bowel movements, extreme fatigue, severe abdominal pain) should see their GP without delay and not wait for the screening programme to be introduced in their area.
Similarly, anyone who has already been diagnosed with and treated for bowel cancer or who has a family history of the disease will automatically be under the care and supervision of their healthcare professional and will be eligible for specialist screening and scans.
A new private screening service is also available from independent company POCL, allowing people of all ages and from any location to take part in this vital health check. A test kit costs just £17.98, with £1 being donated to Beating Bowel Cancer. For this you will be supplied with an FOB testing kit, a return mailer envelope and full instructions. You take samples in the comfort of your own home, complete the personal details card, and return to POCL's new laboratory in Scotland which has been purpose-built to carry out the analysis. Once analysed, the results are returned to you within 10 days.
We're sure you
agree, it's a small price to pay for an important early diagnosis. Buy
your kit by clicking the logo below
.
If you would like more information on the kit before buying one, read the details here or visit www.pocl.co.uk.
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