Bowel Cancer – Why You Shouldn’t Wait Until It’s Too Late

Australia’s second biggest cancer killer – bowel cancer – is being diagnosed far too late in the majority of young people, according to a newly released survey.

The Never Too Young Survey suggests young people are simply unaware about the risks of bowel cancer and how the cancer can spread rapidly into lymph nodes and other organs if left untreated.

More than half of young Australian’s that were first diagnosed with bowel cancer were already into Stage 3 or 4 of the disease.

Large majorities of newly diagnosed bowel cancer cases occur in people 50 years and over, but according to Bowel Cancer Australia 1 in 14 Australians diagnosed with bowel cancer are under the age of 50.

15,151 Australians are diagnosed with bowel cancer each year, and 1091 (7.2%) of who are under the age of 50.

However, there is hope for Australian’s to successfully treat bowel cancer if it is detected in its early stages. The Department of Health says 90% of bowel cancers can be cured if found early.

Spotscreen recommends individuals to proceed with the following steps in order to reduce the number of Australians who die from bowel cancer each year:

• Know your symptoms and become aware of bowel cancer risk factors
• Finding out your family’s cancer history
• Sustaining a healthy, balanced diet and regular exercise or making positive changes to your diet and lifestyle habits
• Early detection through regular bowel cancer screenings

 
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