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The urgency of saving lives through bowel cancer screening

Ian N Olver and Graeme P Young
Med J Aust 2012; 196 (8): . || doi: 10.5694/mja12.10476
Published online: 7 May 2012

While the government’s implementation of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program remains stalled, Australians are dying unnecessarily

One in 12 Australians will develop colorectal cancer (CRC), and it is the second most common cause of cancer death. It is one of only three cancers for which organised population screening is recommended, and it is the first to include men.1


  • 1 Cancer Council Australia, Sydney, NSW.
  • 2 Flinders Centre for Cancer Prevention and Control, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA.


Correspondence: ian.olver@cancer.org.au

Competing interests:

No relevant disclosures.

  • 1. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Bowel cancer for Australia. Australian cancer incidence and mortality (ACIM) books. Canberra: AIHW, 2011. http://www.aihw.gov.au/acim-books (accessed Apr 2012).
  • 2. Bishop J, Glass P, Tracey E, et al. Health economics review of bowel cancer screening in Australia. Sydney: Cancer Institute NSW, 2008.
  • 3. Young GP, Cole S. Which faecal occult blood test is best to screen for colorectal cancer? Nat Clin Pract Gastroenterol Hepatol 2009; 6: 140-141.
  • 4. Young GP. Population-based screening for colorectal cancer: Australian research and implementation. J Gastroenterol Hepatol 2009; 24 (3 Suppl): S33-S42.
  • 5. Pignone M, Flitcroft KL, Howard K, et al. Costs and cost-effectiveness of full implementation of a biennial faecal occult blood test screening program for bowel cancer in Australia. Med J Aust 2011; 194: 180-185. <MJA full text>
  • 6. Tran B, Keating CL, Ananda SS, et al. A preliminary analysis of the cost-effectiveness of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program. Demonstrating the potential value of comprehensive real world data. Intern Med J 2011; 1 Sep [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1111/j.1445-5994.2011.02585.x.
  • 7. Courtney RJ, Paul CL, Sanson-Fisher RW, et al. Colorectal cancer screening in Australia: a community-level perspective. Med J Aust 2012; 196: 516-520.
  • 8. Lansdrop-Vogelaar I, Knudsen AB, Brenner H. Cost-effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening. Epidemiol Rev 2011; 33: 88-100.
  • 9. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. National Bowel Cancer Screening Program monitoring report: phase 2, July 2008 – June 2011. Canberra: AIHW, 2012. (AIHW Cat. No. CAN 61; Cancer Series No. 65.)
  • 10. Javanparast S, Ward P, Carter S, Wilson C. Barriers to and facilitators of colorectal cancer screening in different population subgroups in Adelaide, South Australia. Med J Aust 2012; 196: 521-523.

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