The whole of Hampshire is now covered by the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme which offers screening to men and women aged between 60 and 69 years - the highest risk age group. If you are a man or women in this age group and you are registered with a GP then you will be offered screening every two years. However, it is a new programme and so some people won’t receive their first invitation until the programme has been running nearly two years (roll out will continue until September 2010).

 

 

Maria is encouraging everyone to get to know the key symptoms, to get involved in the NHS screening programme for bowel cancer and to act quickly on key symptoms and screening.

  

Maria said “Around 35,000 people will be diagnosed with bowel cancer this year. But the good news is - it is one of the most curable cancers you can get if it is caught early enough. Few people talk about it – yet it is preventable and curable. I am urging all constituents in Basingstoke to raise awareness of Bowel Cancer and NHS screening programme”

 

To find out more information about Bowel Cancer Faster Diagnosis Week visit www.bowelcancer.tv

The most common symptoms of bowel cancer are:

• a persistent change in bowel habit, especially needing to go to the toilet more often or having diarrhoea for several weeks
• bleeding from the back passage or blood in the bowel motion
• severe abdominal pain
• a lump in the abdomen
• unexplained tiredness or weight loss