A reminder to get tested, during this Bowel Cancer Awareness month
A reminder to get tested, during this Bowel Cancer Awareness month
4 June 2022
New Zealand has one of the highest rates of the disease worldwide - with about three thousand people diagnosed each year.
People over 60 are eligible for an at home screening test - which will be followed by an exam - if the results cause concern.
College of GPs' medical director Bryan Betty says about 50 people in every 1000 will test positive for traces of blood.
He says 30 to 35 of those will have a pre-cancerous lesion and three to four will have bowel cancer - and can be treated early.
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