Call made for bowel cancer screening in Scotland

Healthcare News
28/08/2008
The potential benefits of a national bowel cancer screening programme have been reported.

A national bowel cancer screening programme in Scotland could save around 150 lives a year, it has been reported.

The findings from a pilot screening programme in the Tayside, Grampian and Fife areas suggest that the roll-out across the rest of Scotland later this year could lead to a 16 per cent drop in cancer deaths, according to the Herald.

According to the news provider, approximately 700,000 people aged between 50 and 74 will have been asked to take part in the national programme by the end of next year.

Meanwhile, ecancermedicalscience.com has reported that scientists have devised a more accurate method for identifying aggressive forms of bowel cancer.

The news provider suggests the new technique could lead to improved treatment and survival rates in future.

It states that a team of researchers from Durham University and the North East England Stem Cell Institute found that patients who had a stem cell marker protein called Lamin A were more likely to have an aggressive form of the condition - and as such should be given chemotherapy in addition to the surgery normally offered.

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