BOWEL Cancer is a silent killer.

It is a common cancer and around one in 15 men, and one in 18 women will get it during their lifetime.

Screening can help detect bowel cancer at an early stage, when it's significantly easier to treat.

Everyone aged between 60 and 74 and registered with a GP practice in England is invited to take part in the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme.

But too few people – especially men in parts of Clacton, Frinton, Walton and Colchester – are returning the life-saving kits.

They are now being encouraged to return the home-testing kits, which people can use to collect small samples of poo before they are sent to a laboratory to be checked for blood.

Sarah Martin-Ward is a specialist screening practitioner at the North Essex Bowel Cancer Screening Programme, based at Colchester Hospital.

“When someone reaches the age of 60 they get sent a bowel testing kit in the post,” she said.

“We are looking for whether the specimen contains blood.

“If we do find blood in the stool, people are invited into an assessment clinic, then for a colonoscopy, where we look for small growths in the bowel called polyps, which can develop into cancers.

“We can prevent people from developing bowel cancer by removing those polyps.

“It’s all about preventing cancer, but in our area there are some pockets where we have a 20 per cent lower uptake.

“We would like to increase awareness of the programme and take the fear out of the process – and encourage people to fill in the test kits.

“We want to reach out to people – some see the words ‘bowel cancer’ and bury their head in the sand,

“There are a number of reasons why someone may choose not to complete the kit, but we want to reach these areas and improve survival rates.”

The push comes ahead of Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, which takes place in April.

As part of the initiative, the North Essex team will be getting the message out to people in the community.

The team will be at Clacton Leisure Centre, in Vista Road, with a promotional stall on April 1 and 15 from 10am to 12noon.

They will also be visiting Morrisons, at Waterglade Retail Park, Clacton, and at Tesco in Highwoods, Colchester.

The team will also be working on projects with colorectal nurses at Clacton Hospital.

Mrs Martin-Ward added: “We are a very approachable team. Help is there, not just for patients under our care, and if cancer is diagnosed then there is a good support network at East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust.”

“Bowel cancer survival in England has more than doubled over the last 40 years, but is still below the European average. The North Essex Team think there is potential to increase survival rates much further.

“People think they’re fine and well, but cancer of the bowels can be a silent killer – you may only get symptoms in the final stages.

“We want to capture patients while still in good health without symptoms.

“Early detection is the key – if it’s discovered in the late stages, the treatment options and outcomes are much more limited.”

Testing at home is also set to get even easier thanks to a new testing kit, which is expected to be rolled out later this year.

Mrs Martin-Ward said: “At the moment they have got to smear poo on to a card three times – the new kit requires taking one small sample from the stool.

“The testing kit will be introduced later this year and that will make it much easier – it’s much more user friendly and is more accurate.”

Most bowel cancers develop from pre-cancerous growths, called polyps. But not all polyps develop into cancer. If your doctor finds any polyps, he or she can remove them to prevent them becoming cancerous.

Bowel cancer is the fourth most common cancer in the UK and almost 42,000 people are diagnosed with it every year. But screening means that survival in the 60 to 69 range is higher than most other age ranges.

If you are over 74 it is still possible to refer yourself for screening. Replacements for lost kits, or enquiries about your screening, can all be addressed by contacting the Screening Programme on 0800 707 6060.