Beat Bowel Cancer Aotearoa
“They are a nationwide, patient led organisation committed to reducing the impact of bowel cancer in their communities through awareness, education and support. They are working to raise awareness of symptoms, promote early diagnosis and encourage fair and affordable access to treatment for those affected by bowel cancer.
Bowel cancer, also known as colorectal cancer or colon cancer is any cancer that affects the colon (large bowel) and rectum (back passage). Most bowel cancers start as benign innocent growths called polyps on the wall of the bowel. Polyps are like small spots or cherries on stalks and most do not produce symptoms. Polyps are common as we get older and most polyps are not pre-cancerous.
One type of polyp called an adenoma can become cancerous (malignant). If left undetected the cancer cells will multiply to form a tumour in the bowel. If untreated, the tumour can grow into the wall of the bowel or back passage.
Once cancer cells are in the wall, they can travel into the bloodstream or lymph nodes; from here the cancer cells can travel to other parts of the body. For bowel cancer, the most common places for bowel cancer cells to spread to are the liver and the lungs. The process of spread is called metastasis.
The earlier bowel cancer is caught, the easier it is to treat. 90% of bowel cancer is curable if caught at the earliest stages. This why it is so important to know the symptoms and causes of bowel cancer. Through their work, Beat Bowel Cancer Aotearoa aim to promote implementation of a national screening programme in New Zealand. This is long overdue and they must make sure they get it right. Every year they wait, as many as another 270 New Zealanders may die needlessly from Bowel Cancer.
Bowel Cancer is New Zealand’s cancer. Instead of leading the world in terms of the numbers of people affected by bowel cancer and deaths from bowel cancer, they say they need to lead the world in terms of finding solutions to this disease and improving outcomes for patients.”
