The NHS is set to reduce the bowel cancer screening age from 60 to 50, in a significant victory for campaigner Dame Deborah James, according to reports. The journalist and podcast host had been a vocal advocate for this change prior to her death at the age of 40 in 2022.
She was instrumental in raising millions of pounds for cancer research through the Bowelbabe Fund and was awarded a damehood by Prince William for her charitable efforts just weeks before her passing. Dame James’ mother, Heather, 67, expressed that Debs would be “grinning from ear to ear” over the decision to lower the bowel cancer screening age, which will enable an additional four million people to access early screening.
The Woking-based educator and journalist was diagnosed with incurable bowel cancer in 2016 and despite her own battle with the disease, she managed to raise more than £16million for research into it. She lived with the illness for eight years, during which time the mother of two was lauded for her charity work.
Dame Deborah James tirelessly campaigned for better bowel cancer awareness right up until her death in 2022
(Image: Instagram)
Her final social media message read: “Find a life worth enjoying; take risks; love deeply; have no regrets; and always have rebellious hope. And finally, check your poo – it could just save your life.”
Speaking from her home in Woking, Heather told The Sun: “Deborah will be up there grinning from ear to ear, jumping for joy. But I know she would want to urge anyone who gets a screening invite to take the test. She was all too aware that many people ignore the invite and put off their test, a decision that can prove fatal.”, reports the Mirror.
Around 850,000 people aged between 50 and 52 in England are set to receive postal test kits as the age for routine bowel cancer screenings is lowered. Under the new rules, individuals will be screened every two years up until the age of 74.
Bowel cancer ranks among one of the UK’s most prevalent diseases with over 44,000 diagnoses annually. Early detection is crucial for improving survival rates.
Heather couldn’t be prouder of the new NHS change, as it fulfils her daughter’s dying wish
(Image: BBC)
In a 2018 newspaper column reflecting on her own battle with cancer, Debs highlighted the importance of awareness: “For too long, we as a society have shied away from things that are a bit grim – poo, our bowels, the nasty things going on in there.”
She also stressed, “You are never too young to be told you have bowel cancer, and so it’s doubly important we educate ourselves so we know the signs and symptoms to watch out for.”
Heather, who lost her daughter over two years ago, expressed her belief yesterday that Deborah’s “dream” was being realised: “I really believe our grandchildren can look forward to a future where cancer isn’t the killer that it is now – rather it will be a chronic condition people can live long lives with. That was always Deborah’s dream.”