Two decades after the first NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme began, NHS figures show screening is saving an estimated 3,500 lives each year.
Preventing and detecting bowel cancer earlier is also saving the NHS £32 million each year.
Early diagnosis is key
Bowel cancer is the UK’s fourth most common cancer. Also known as colorectal cancer, depending on where it’s found, it can affect the colon and the rectum. The disease kills around 16,000 people each year in the UK.
Due to bowel cancer’s non-specific symptoms, it is often only detected at a late stage. But the disease is treatable and curable, especially when diagnosed early.
Screening spots the disease early
Screening is one of the best ways to spot the disease early and identify growths, called polyps, that may develop into cancer.
Grace, aged 54, from Cornwall, said:
I truly believe the NHS Bowel Screening Programme saved my life.
She received a home-testing kit in the post and despite having no symptoms, her test came back positive for bowel cancer. She said the:
test could be the most important post you ever receive.
If you’re aged between 50 and 74, you’ll be invited to take part in bowel cancer screening every two years.
The NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme has detected 70,000 cancers, and screened almost 85 million people in total since it began. This achievement was made possible by long‑term Medical Research Council (MRC)-funded research.
Bowel cancer screening beginnings
The Nottingham Bowel Cancer Screening Trial was funded by MRC over a period of 24 years. Started in 1981, the trial recruited 152,850 people over 60. The trial showed that testing for hidden blood in a poo sample reduced the risk of dying from bowel cancer by 16%.
The trial pioneered the use of this blood test, also known as faecal occult blood testing. In 2016 this was replaced with a more accurate test called the faecal immunochemical test (FIT).
FIT kits are used at home by putting a poo sample in a small tube and returning it by post to the NHS for testing. The test is simple, cheap and effective at detecting early-stage bowel cancers and polyps on the lining of the bowel.
Evidence informs NHS screening programme
Evidence from the trial directly informed the introduction of the England NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme in 2006, later expanded nationwide in 2010 and to younger age groups.
Two decades on, the programme is saving lives, delivering earlier diagnosis and cancer prevention through polyp removal. According to the NHS it’s one of their most cost‑effective cancer interventions.
Economic and international impact
In addition, the recent lowering of the threshold for a home-screening kit to trigger urgent cancer testing should prevent and detect more cancers earlier. As a result, the NHS will now offer 35% more screening colonoscopies each year to help diagnose or rule out bowel cancer.
This is expected to reduce late-stage diagnoses and deaths from bowel cancer by around 6%. Preventing and detecting more cancers earlier will save the NHS £32 million each year.
International screening programmes modelled on the UK system have also been introduced, including in Canada, Denmark and Australia, which will save many more lives.