A doctor has warned patients to get any symptoms they are worried about being signs of bowel cancer checked out.
Dr Malcolm Smith fears many patients are missing out on a vital early cancer diagnosis because they are not going to their GPs in time.
“With bowel cancer, if you catch it early the prognosis is always a lot better,” he says.
“Unfortunately with Covid, people with bowel cancer, and lots of other conditions, are presenting later.
“It’s either a combination of not wanting to bother people about their symptoms; ignoring symptoms because they’ve got other things on their minds or possibly difficulty accessing health care.”
Many patients are arriving at hospital showing advanced signs of the disease by the time they get tests for bowel cancer.
‘Some people have significant abdominal pain’
“Some people have significant anaemia, ” Dr Smith, who works at Albyn Hospital and Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, said. “They’ve lost weight and have quite significant abdominal pain.
“And unfortunately in some cases, the cancer has already spread outwith the bowel which then limits our treatment options.
“It is a concern. The earlier we detect it the better.”
‘I’m very lucky’
Fiona Howie, who recently underwent surgery at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, also stressed the importance of getting tested for bowel cancer and an early diagnosis.
Speaking to us during Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, Fiona, 48, said she started suffering from abdominal pain in the summer of 2019.
And after booking an appointment with her doctor, she was referred to her local hospital for further investigations.
By the time she attended her September appointment at ARI, she’d started to notice blood when she went to the toilet.
Two polyps were removed during a colonoscopy procedure. But she ended up requiring surgery to remove her sigmoid colon because of a further polyp in this last section of the bowel.
She underwent the procedure in December 2020 and was diagnosed with bowel cancer soon afterwards.
“I was fortunate that they were able to remove the whole tumour and I was able to get the chemotherapy and that there’s no spread anywhere else, ” she said.
“I’m very lucky.”
‘I know people who missed out on an early diagnosis who died’
The district nurse, who lives in Elgin, in Moray, is all too aware of how vital it is to get an early diagnosis.
“I went back to work in September which was probably a bit too soon for me, mentally and physically,” she said.
“And I was struggling a bit because a lot of the work I do involves palliative care.
“I was seeing a lot of people that probably didn’t go to their GP, not necessarily with bowel cancer, but with other cancers, and then ended up being very poorly and actually passing away.
“Some didn’t want to bother anybody because it was in lockdown. So that was quite a challenge for me.”
Since going through her own cancer journey, the mother-of-two is keen to raise awareness of the symptoms of bowel cancer so more people are aware and get tested.
Fiona, who is in remission, has also raised money for Bowel Cancer UK through carrying out outdoor activities such as walking and cycling with her friends.
She also completed the Loch Ness 10K in October and has raised more than £4,000 through her efforts.
Test for bowel cancer: ‘We’re keen for patients to get diagnosed quickly’
Dr Malcolm Smith stressed the NHS is prioritising appointments for patients with concerning symptoms and urged people not to put off going to their GP for advice.
Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death for both men and women with around 1,600 people dying of the disease in Scotland each year.
“During the coronavirus pandemic people have been presenting late with lots of different cancers,” he said.
“But if you do have concerning symptoms the health care is still there.
“We’re really keen for those patients with concerning symptoms to get diagnosed as quickly as possible.”
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