Department Of Health Roll Out Bowel Cancer Screening Programme

The Department of Health is rolling out it’s Bowel Cancer Screening Programme later on in the year with the intention of saving lives.

The Department of Health is rolling out it’s Bowel Cancer Screening Programme later on in the year with the intention of saving lives.

All residents aged 60-69 will be invited to participate in the programme which will endeavour to trace cases of the illness in the early stages.

Residents in the target age group will receive a test and information pack by post, they will have to return samples for testing, in the event the tests come back positive they will be assessed in a clinic and offered colonoscopy.

Currently Bowel Cancer is the cause of roughly 25 deaths per year on the Island, it's the second most common cancer among women, and third among men.

The aim of the screening programme is to detect the disease before it begins to show symptoms, when caught early the condition has a high success treatment rate.

The process will cost roughly £300,000 to get off the ground, but costs are expected to come down considerably as it progresses.

It's hoped upto 5 lives a year could be saved as a result of the programme.