JUNE is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, and Lismore MP Janelle Saffin is urging eligible people to take the bowel screening test, with only 39.5 per cent of people from the Northern NSW Local Health District who receive the kit taking the test.
Ms Saffin said the test completion rate for the Hunter-New England Local Health District, which takes in the Tenterfield Shire, was only slightly better, sitting at 42.2 per cent.
However, Ms Saffin stressed that the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program’s test is quick and easy, with those who have done it before almost three times more likely than first-time invitees to do it again.
“I encourage everyone who is eligible to take the few minutes to do the test in the privacy their home and return it for testing, because it could save their lives,” Ms Saffin said.
“Bowel cancer is very treatable if caught early, so when the test arrives in the mail, don’t hesitate or put it off … just do it.”
The test is available to those aged between 45 and 74 years and is the easiest way to detect the early signs of bowel cancer, Australia’s second deadliest cancer. If caught early bowel cancer can be successfully treated in more than 90 per cent of cases.
The risk of bowel cancer increases significantly with age, but people of all ages can get the disease. Anyone experiencing changes in bowel habits, bleeding, fatigue, anaemia or unexplained weight loss should see their GP.
People can reduce their risk of bowel cancer by eating a diet rich in vegetables, fruit, cereals and wholegrains, maintaining a healthy weight and being physically active; and by doing the at-home screening test every two years from age 45.
People aged 50 to 74 receive free bowel screening tests to the address they have registered with Medicare. People aged 45 to 49 years need to request their first test kit, and will automatically receive subsequent kits.
The Cancer Institute NSW recently went live with the Bowel Cancer
Screening “Do the
test” Advertising Campaign to motivate eligible people in NSW to
participate in the National Bowel Cancer Screening
Program.
The
campaign will run until 30 June 2025 and is being delivered across a range of
advertising channels, including radio, press, digital and social media.
The campaign is among several Cancer Institute NSW led initiatives to increase bowel cancer screening rates and to support people on their clinical pathway following a positive test result.
Find out more about bowel cancer screening in NSW here: Free Bowel Cancer Screening Test Kit – Cancer Institute NSW
