The Big C of the Bowel

Disclaimer: This article represents the views of its writer, and GrownUps does not make any recommendations. Please seek advice from a professional in relation to your own circumstances. 

New Zealand has a bowel cancer problem. Compared with other countries, New Zealanders are more likely to die from an advanced bowel cancer and this is wrong. So what is it, and what can you do about it?

Firstly, the problem; Bowel cancer is very common in New Zealand. Kiwis have more than a 5% chance of developing bowel cancer in their lifetime. This may be due to our love of meat; roasts, sausages, pies and other red meats have a weak assocation with bowel cancer. 

Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer (after lung cancer). It occurs mostly in people over the age of 50. It usually starts as a polyp, which looks like a little cauliflower stem coming out from the bowel wall. These polyps usually take around 10 years to evolve from benign to malignant and can be removed easily so it is an excellent time to pick up the problem. 

If left and allowed to form into a cancer, it may grow through the bowel wall, into lymph nodes and away from the bowel entirely (usually to the liver). By this stage your treatment options are limited and cure is unlikely.  

As a bowel cancer progresses you may get more symptoms and signs but initially there will be nothing noticeable. The first problem may be bleeding into the stool, which may make it darker. Later symptoms include a change in bowel habit to diarrhoea or constipation or symptoms related to a blockage in the bowel such as bloating or vomiting. If you have symptoms that do not resolve quickly then you should see your GP for follow up testing.

The Ministry of Health is currently working out whether screening for bowel cancer is useful and cost effective. This is in the Waitemata bowelscreen pilot. Results will not be out for at least 2 more years before a nation wide screening programme may be started.

Until then, be vigilant to the symptoms mentioned above. Also, if you have already had bowel cancer or a polyp, or have people in your family that have had bowel cancer, you may be at increased risk and need further testing. Discuss with your GP if you are not sure or want clarification. And look at that stool before you flush it down!

Read more from Dr David Hassan here