45 Could Keep You Alive

45 is the age the US starts bowel cancer screening. Australia too. Much of Europe is moving the same direction. There’s a reason for that – the evidence shows it saves lives.

Today the HSE announced it is dropping the BowelScreen starting age from 58 to 57. We welcome every step forward. But 57 is still a 12-year gap from where the evidence says we need to be. For someone diagnosed at 46, or 51, or 54, that gap can be the difference between stage one and stage four.

Bowel cancer found early is highly treatable. A colonoscopy can find pre-cancerous polyps and remove them before cancer ever develops. But you have to be in the system. And right now, Ireland’s system still isn’t looking for you until you’re nearly 60.

So look out for yourself. If you’re 45 or older, talk to your GP about screening at your next visit. Ask every year. Make it part of your routine the way you would a blood pressure check or a cholesterol test.

And if something doesn’t feel right – changes in bowel habit, blood, bloating, pain that won’t go away – go to your GP now, regardless of your age. Don’t arrive with a list of demands. Just tell them your symptoms and let them guide you. Your GP has options – from a FIT test to a referral for colonoscopy – and they will find the right path for you. The most important thing is that you go.

Bowel cancer has no minimum age requirement. 45 could keep you alive. Start the conversation.