Let’s talk about bowel cancer...
knows better than most the risks associated with cancer and is one of the lucky ones to have survived.
“Over my life I have had a few battles with the big ‘C’,” he told ASK anyone to talk about bowel cancer and most people will clam up. But the alarming truth is this: Australia has one of the highest rates of bowel cancer in the world and more than 15,000 Australians are diagnosed with the disease each year.
It is our second deadliest cancer and claims more than 4000 lives each year.
According to Bowel Cancer Australia CEO Julien Wiggins, one of the key risk factors for bowel cancer is increasing age. As a result, it is not surprising to see a rise in incidence with an ageing population, with around 85 per cent of cases occurring in people aged 55 and over.
Implementation of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program in 2020 is working to change that statistic, with Australians aged 50-74 having the opportunity to participate in screening every two years.
Local man Bill Dewar Bill Dewar
“Any type of cancer on the rise in this time of huge money, (and the lack of) research being put into combatting this horrible disease, is terrible.”
After turning 50 last year, Mr Dewar has entered the high-risk category for bowel cancer. But it doesn’t faze him.
When asked how people should overcome the embarrassment of ‘poking their poo’ as a means of detecting bowel cancer, he was very straight-forward in his response.
“Face the fact that it’s better than dying. Men especially have that phobia of poking something up their bum but it’s better than pushing up daisies.” Mr Wiggins agreed that bowel cancer quite literally is a conversation killer.
“People don’t like talking about their bowels, let alone discussing taking samples of their poo,” he said.
Research conducted by Bowel Cancer Australia has consistently shown that the majority (80 per cent) don’t have a bowel cancer test because they think it is “messy and embarrassing”, which may be a reason why participation in the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program remains at only 41 per cent.
However, the truth about bowel cancer is that even home screening tests are not enough.
“People who receive a positive screen or experience bowel cancer symptoms must also receive a timely follow-up colonoscopy, or the opportunity for early detection is lost.
“We know 90 per cent of bowel cancer cases can be successfully treated if detected early, but the opportunity is lost if people do not receive a timely diagnostic colonoscopy.”
Unfortunately, the incidence of bowel cancer is higher in rural areas where there is an ageing population.
“The 2016 Bernard Salt demographic report – titled “In the Crosshairs of Colorectal Cancer” – revealed bowel cancer strikes deepest and harshest among rural and retirement communities, where the 50-79 age group comprise at least one-third and up to one-half of the local population,” Mr Wiggins said.
However, with colonoscopy wait times topping 160 days, Bowel Cancer Australia has urged the Government to provide additional funding towards reducing them.
“There should be an ongoing commitment to ensure timely colonoscopy, given projected demand. And access to a colonoscopy should be based on need, not ability to pay or where you live in Australia,” Mr Wiggins told
z For more information, visit bowelcanceraustralia.org DO you experience problems with mobile coverage and internet connectivity? The NSW Government’s Connecting Country Communities program is asking residents of regional NSW to report their problems via a questionnaire or by calling 1300 679 673 by Wednesday, August 15.
You can print the questions from an online survey and return them to PO Box 5106, Wollongong, NSW 2520.
The information will then be provided to the NSW Telco Authority and service providers for planning and investment to improve mobile coverage and internet access across regional NSW.