Cancer Research UK Press Release - men's chances of bowel cancer has increased

 As the news on my radio alarm woke me this morning I heard that Cancer Research UK have issued a Press Release today which makes alarming reading but confirms why we hear of more people having cancer than ever before. The reassuring news is that is that survival rates are much better.


Here are the main headlines from that Press Release..........

Men’s chances of getting bowel cancer in Great Britain have doubled since the mid 70s. Their lifetime risk has increased from around one in 29 to around one in 15. And for women bowel cancer risk has risen by more than a quarter going from one in 26 to one in 19.

Half of all patients diagnosed with bowel cancer now survive the disease for at least 10 years (around 50 per cent) – double the number who would have done so in the early 70s (around 23 per cent).

Other figures, released today by Cancer Research UK, show that men generally are more at risk of getting cancer – 42.2 per cent develop the disease compared to 38.8 per cent of women.

 For some cancers including bowel – the risk of cancer in the next 10 years will be much higher for people in their 50s and 60s.

Sara Hiom, director of health information at Cancer Research UK, said: "An ageing population as well as changes in lifestyle have both led to more people developing cancer than a generation ago.
"But even though the chances of getting the disease have increased in the population there are many ways that people can cut their own risk. You can reduce your risk of bowel cancer by keeping a healthy weight, being physically active, eating a healthy diet that’s high in fibre and low in red and processed meat, cutting down on alcohol and not smoking. It’s also important to take up the opportunity to take part in bowel screening when invited.

And the good news is that even though more people are developing bowel cancer, more people are surviving the disease. There are many reasons for this including earlier diagnosis improved surgical techniques and better treatments many of which have been developed.

Early diagnosis is the key in dealing with bowel cancer but the English NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme is available only to people aged 60 years and over who are based in England. It cannot screen people who are below this age or who live elsewhere. Yet in Scotland and Wales their respective Bowel Screening Programmes will invite all men and women in Scotland between the ages of 50 to 74 for screening every two years. Why the difference I ask? Why in England do we not get the same treatment?

As the Press Release highlights that the risk is higher for people in their 50s as well as people in their 60s it is so important that if you are worried about symptoms such as a persistent change in bowel habit, pain in your abdomen, bleeding from the back passage, tiredness or weight loss, or are worried about your bowel health in any way, you shouldn't wait for screening. You should speak to your GP, who can arrange for referral to a specialist if necessary.