Local MP, Maria Miller has pledged to become a Bowel Cancer Champion.
Bowel Cancer UK - the UK’s leading bowel cancer research charity - aims to increase early diagnosis and improve access to best treatment. By working together with people affected by the disease and the clinical and research community, as well as MPs, the charity’s ambition is that by 2025, survival rates can be transformed from 60% of people surviving bowel cancer to 75%.
Someone is diagnosed with bowel cancer every 15 minutes, making it the UK's fourth most common cancer. It's also the second biggest cancer killer, nearly 16,000 people die from the disease every year. Yet bowel cancer is treatable and curable especially if diagnosed early. However, only 15% are diagnosed at the earliest stage of the disease when the chance of survival is highest.
Maria said “Basingstoke is a leading centre for bowel cancer treatment. Early diagnosis really can save lives and I would urge my constituents who are sent a bowel screening test to use it. Taking part in bowel cancer screening is the best way to get diagnosed early. If you are over 60, take the test when you receive it in the post.
I’m proud to be working with Bowel Cancer UK to call for changes which can improve outcomes for patients with bowel cancer.”