Progress on colorectal cancer screening

The research highlights an urgent need for further public health education and to increase participation – particularly among men.

The national screening programme for colorectal cancer, by faecal occult blood testing (FOBT), commenced in 2007. Prior to this, several pilot rounds of screening have taken place in England (Coventry and Warwickshire) and in Scotland. Individuals are identified from primary care databases, written information and FOBT kits are distributed via the post. Those who test positive to FOBT are offered a screening colonoscopy. The first round of screening commenced in September 2000 and, at that time, uptake of the programme was nearly 60% in England.1 The final report of the first round of screening suggested that this was an acceptable level of population participation based on previous studies carried out in Nottingham.2 The randomised controlled trial performed in Nottingham had an uptake of 57% among the screening group which subsequently equated to a 27% reduction in the risk of death, 13% overall in the intervention group, from colorectal cancer over a median follow up period of eleven years.3 Results of the first round of screening found differing levels of uptake in various subsections of the target population. Women were more likely to comply with the screening programme than men, while participation increased with age and among those of a higher socioeconomic class.1 For screening to obtain its goal of earlier detection of colorectal malignancy population, participation is paramount. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify individuals’ awareness and perceptions surrounding the screening programme.

Method