As the nights get colder and darker sooner, and simply being outdoors causes you an unnatural amount of pain to your face, it’s probably advisable just to stay indoors and read all about the previous month of bowel cancer screening news and events. Go on, it’s just easier isn’t it?
Throughout the past month there has been a number of big news stories and studies regarding bowel cancer that have made their way to the on to our screens and papers.
A study from the University of Leeds had found that low cost drugs have reduced the number of bowel in polyps in patients. The trial had screening colonoscopy patients take aspirin, purified omega-3 (EPA), both or a placebo in order to determine the effect this had on the number of polyps developed. Patients who took aspirin or EPA had found to have fewer polyps than those that had the placebo, although their chances of developing any polyps at all did not reduce. While this study suggests promising path for preventative treatments, it’s important to note that a number of further studies and trials are needed to verify this data, but nonetheless reinforces the notion of eating healthily, such as foods rich in Omega-3.
Another story highlights a real shame where patients felt like they couldn’t speak to their GP about potential cancer symptoms. People may not feel like they can speak to their GP about these problems due to the difficulty in setting up an appointment or may be worried that they’ll be wasting the doctor’s time, but it is important to stress the importance of early diagnosis. There are a huge number of benefits to finding diseases as early as possible such as better prognosis, less aggressive treatments, patient peace of mind and ultimately a lower cost to the NHS.
November also saw Men’s International Day, to recognise the men’s issues around the world. In regards to bowel cancer, statistics have shown that men are often less likely to complete the home-testing kit and men are more likely to develop bowel cancer. This large discrepancy means that there’s a large void in detecting and finding these cancers as early as possible, which as stated earlier has huge positives for the patient and the NHS.
The Health Promotion team at St Mark’s Bowel Cancer Screening have been to a number of community events and pharmacies giving training session and information to the public of North West London this month. It is important that the public are able to speak to a range of primary care givers such as GPs, community nurses and pharmacists to get information on their specific health issues and alleviate any concerns, which is why we’re dedicated to working with wide variety of institutes and groups. To arrange a training session or a public talk, email Sameer.choglay@nhs.net and we’ll be more than happy to see how we can collaborate.
Going in to December and there’s obviously a lot to look forward to. Aside from the usual festive holidays we all anticipate/dread/love, Bowel Cancer UK have set up #Decembeard, a fundraising campaign to raise money for bowel cancer research and services. To sign up and support this campaign then head on over to https://www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk/support-us/fundraise/decembeard/. We all wish we could be grizzly bears and sleep through the winter months, so do your best to transform in to one and raise money for a good cause at the same time!
Thanks for taking the time to read this, we'll speak again when we've all deluded ourselves in to thinking that new years resolution will last more than a few weeks!🤣