Don’t throw your bowel cancer screening kit in the bin – it might save your life
Murray Bridge Medical Centre’s Wendy Ziersch encourages you to take a simple test during Bowel Cancer Awareness Month.
This sponsored story is brought to you by Murray Bridge Medical Centre.
June is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, a time to think about what you can do to ward off Australia’s second deadliest cancer.
Bowel cancer claims the lives of 101 Australians every week, according to Bowel Cancer Australia, but is highly treatable if detected early.
That’s why every Australian over the age of 50 receives a free bowel cancer screening kit in the mail every couple of years.
Anyone aged 45 and over is also eligible to get a free screening kit on request.
The test is quick, clean and easy to complete at home.
All you need to do is fill in a form, use the supplied equipment to collect tiny samples of two different poos, then mail the samples to a pathology lab.
The lab will test the samples for traces of blood, which can be an indicator that something is not right in your bowel.
You should get the results of the test within four weeks.
Murray Bridge Medical Centre practice manager Wendy Ziersch urged everyone who received the kit to open it and follow the easy-to-follow instructions.
“Bowel cancer screening is one of the biggest things that we can do to save people, just with a two-second test,” she said.
“I think people just go ‘ugh, I’m not doing that’.
“But if it can capture the start of cancer cells growing, why wouldn’t you do it?
“Don’t throw it in the bin … you need to get it done.”
If your test does return a positive result, you’ll get a letter back from the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program and your regular doctor will be notified.
- 15,000 Australians are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year
- One out of every 16 people you know will face a diagnosis at some point in their lives
- Almost 99% of cases can be treated successfully if detected early enough
And if none of that convinces you, consider the tongue-in-cheek advice of enrolled nurse Adam Wilkinson.
“When else can you (defecate) in an envelope and send it to the government?”
- Request a bowel cancer screening kit: Visit Murray Bridge Medical Centre, your local GP or www.ncsr.gov.au.
- More information about bowel cancer prevention: www.bowelcanceraustralia.org.
- Donate to Bowel Cancer Australia: www.bowelcanceraustralia.org.
Mural project is progressing
Meanwhile, Murray Bridge Medical Centre has chosen the two artists who will complete a mural project we told you about last month.
Ngarrindjeri women Talia Scriven and Jamaya Brandon will complete artworks to adorn the waiting room walls at the clinic.
Wendy said she had been convinced by their soul, their passion and their stories: “We’re excited to work with them.”
The art project, to be completed in the coming months, is being funded by the Country SA Primary Health Network, a state government agency.
- More information: Visit www.murraybridgemedical.com.au, call 8531 2988 or visit Murray Bridge Medical Centre at 35-37 Adelaide Road, Murray Bridge from 8am-6pm on weekdays, 8am-9pm on Wednesdays, or 9am-4pm on Saturdays.
Advertising to more than 20,000 highly engaged locals can do wonders for your business. Call Jane Intini on 0418 835 768 or email jane@murraybridge.news.
Peri Strathearn
