Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is bowel screening?

A national programme which will see all men and women aged 50-74 being sent a test kit to their home to complete and return to the national Bowel Screening Centre in Dundee for testing.
Bowel screening is a quick and easy way to identify people who may be at risk of bowel cancer as the screening test looks for any traces of blood in the bowel motions (poo). If blood is present, this can be a sign that the individual has bowel cancer although it is important to note that blood in the motions may be due to many causes other than bowel cancer.

2. Do you need to take part in screening if you don’t have any bowel symptoms?

Yes, definitely. The beauty of bowel screening is that it can pick up early cancers before they cause symptoms. Taking part in bowel screening is the best way to protect yourself against bowel cancer.

3. How will I receive my screening kit?

It will be posted to you every two years on or around the time of your birthday.

4. How do you do the test?

The test involves collecting six samples from three separate bowel movements.
To do the test properly you have to catch your bowel motion and make sure it doesn’t touch the water.

For accurate results, your bowel motion must not touch the water.

The screening pack contains a detailed instruction leaflet entitled ‘Bowel Screening: Step by Step Instructions’. Please refer to this.

5. How do I catch a bowel motion?

There are a number of options open to you though you should use the method you feel most comfortable with.

You can:

Catch it on a piece of toilet paper.
Use a plastic bag.
Use a plastic tub of some kind.
Use a child’s potty.
Use a rubber glove.

6. What do I do once I’ve caught it?

Once you have caught your bowel motion, use one of the cardboard sticks provided in the screening pack to take a small sample from your bowel motion and smear it on the first square window of the cardboard test kit.
Take a second sample from a different part of the same bowel motion and smear it on the second window in the test kit and close the lid on the first tab.
Once this is done, you should then dispose of the items you used to catch your bowel motion as well as the sticks and wash your hands thoroughly.
You should then store the kit somewhere until you are ready for your next bowel movement.

7. Where should I store it?

You can place the kit in a plastic container or in a plastic bag and store these somewhere in your bathroom.
This could be somewhere prominent to remind you to do the test again or if you prefer, it could be underneath your toilet bowel, under your sink or in a bathroom cupboard.

8. Repeat this process on the next two occasions you have a bowel movement.

You will have successfully completed the screening kit when you have six samples from three separate bowel movements.
Remember: Every screening pack will contain a detailed instruction leaflet entitled ‘Bowel Screening: Step by Step Instructions’.

9. What do I do once I’ve collected all my samples?

You place your test kit in the supplied pre-paid envelope and send it to the national Bowel Screening Centre. The address is on the front of the envelope.

10. What happens next?

The Bowel Screening Centre will send you the result within one week.
Most people will have a ‘negative’ or normal result, which means that no blood was found in the samples you gave.
However, be alert: Even if you have a negative result, you should never ignore bowel symptoms.
It is also important you take part in bowel screening again in two years time.

11. What if my bowel motion does have traces of blood?

You will be contacted by a health professional and the next stage of tests will then be explained to you.
Colonoscopy (an examination of the bowel with a very fine and flexible tube with an in-built camera) is the most effective way to check for finding bowel cancer. You will need an out-patient appointment for this.
However, don’t panic
Around 10 out of every 500 people tested using the screening kit will have traces of blood found in their bowel motions.
Of these 10 people, around five will get the ‘’all clear’’ with further tests, four will have polyps (polyps are bits of extra tissue which grow inside the lining of the bowel but which generally do not cause harm), and one person will have bowel cancer.

12. Do you just take part in bowel screening once?

No. Screening is not a one off test and it is important people continue to take part in bowel screening while they are eligible to get greatest benefit.

13. Why is screening only for those men and women aged 50-74?

Screening programmes are targeted at those individuals in the population who are at greatest risk. We know that people aged between 50-74 are at higher risk of bowel cancer than younger people and that more than 90 per cent of all bowel cancers are in people aged over 50 years. We also know that screening this population every two years will help identify bowel cancer at an early stage and will reduce deaths from bowel cancer by 16 per cent.
Screening usually has an upper age cut off which is kept under review and depends on things like, how long people live for on average and whether they would still benefit from detection of bowel cancers at that age across the population or whether they are more likely to die from heart disease or other causes.

14. What if you don’t have any bowel?

If you have no large bowel then there is no need for you to have bowel screening. This will be confirmed with your doctor as some people may have had part of but not their entire bowel removed. If there is any bowel left, it is important that you take part in bowel screening.