Bowel cancer is the third most common cancer in Scotland. Around 4,000 people in Scotland get bowel cancer every year.
You will be invited to complete the bowel screening test if you:
If you’re 75 or over, you can still take a bowel screening test every 2 years. However, you’ll need to request a new test kit each time as the Scottish Bowel Screening Centre won’t send you one.
Bowel cancer is more common in people over 50 years of age, especially men and those assigned male at birth (AMAB).
Some risk factors are unavoidable, such as age, sex or family history. However, as well as doing your bowel screening test you can reduce your risk of developing bowel cancer by:
You may not receive your kit on the expected date. This is because there was a pause in the bowel screening programme because of the pandemic.
Invitation dates have been moved back to make sure everybody can be screened. For example, if you expected your kit in September 2021, you’ll now receive it in April 2022. After this, your invitation will return to a 2 year cycle and your next invitation would be April 2024. This is to make sure everyone receives their kit in turn and that no one is missed.
Bowel screening involves taking a simple test at home every 2 years. The test looks for hidden blood in your poo, as this could mean a higher chance of bowel cancer.
The aim of the test is to find:
Most bowel polyps can be removed easily, which can prevent cancer from developing.
The screening test can be done in the privacy of your own home, and can help to find:
Most polyps can be removed, and this can prevent future cancers from developing. 9 out of 10 people survive bowel cancer if it’s found and treated early.
The bowel screening test will pick up most cases of bowel cancer but can’t find them all. The test looks for hidden blood in your poo and not all cancers bleed. Changes can also happen between screening tests.
This means cancer can sometimes be missed, so it’s important that you:
If you’re eligible, the Scottish Bowel Screening Centre will send you a free test kit to your home address. This is the address you used to register with your GP.
If you’ve made a mistake, misplaced, or didn’t receive your screening test kit, you can request a replacement test kit by completing the request a bowel screening test kit online form.
Alternatively, you can also ask for a test kit by contacting the Scottish Bowel Screening Centre:
If you can’t reach a member of staff by phone, you can still order a test kit using the automated service (available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year).
When asking for a kit, please give your:
The bowel screening test kit includes:
The return envelope you’ve been sent with the bowel screening test kit has recently been updated to yellow in colour. Your instructions will show a white envelope.
Please use the envelope you’ve been sent. Our instructions will be updated soon to show the new envelope.
To do the test you’ll need:
To collect your poo sample you could use toilet paper placed in the toilet or an empty and clean plastic container like an ice cream or margarine tub.
Before you collect your sample:
If you don’t stick the label on the side of the test, the screening centre won’t know the sample belongs to you. If this happens, you’ll need to repeat the test.
To collect a sample:
Make sure you’ve:
If you don’t stick the label on the side of the test, the screening centre won’t know the sample belongs to you. If this happens, you’ll need to repeat the test.
Then put the finished test with the label on it in the prepaid envelope and post it as soon as possible.
After returning the test, the Scottish Bowel Screening Centre will send you the results within 2 weeks.
You will receive 1 of 2 results:
If you haven’t received your test results after 2 weeks, please contact the Scottish Bowel Screening Centre.
If you’re told that there’s no further investigation needed, your results have not shown any signs of bowel cancer.
Because the test can miss certain cancers, and changes can happen between screening tests, it’s important that you:
If the amount of blood found in your poo sample is above the normal screening limit, you’ll be referred for an outpatient hospital appointment called a colonoscopy.
A colonoscopy is an examination of the bowel using a thin, flexible tube with a camera on the end. It’s the most effective way of looking for the cause of bleeding.
A colonoscopy takes about half an hour and will require an outpatient appointment, so you shouldn’t need to stay in hospital for more than a few hours.
Before coming to the hospital you’ll need to empty your bowel. You’ll be given clear instructions about how to do this before your appointment.
If you’re invited for a colonoscopy, you’ll receive information about the benefits and risks of the procedure before your appointment.
After your colonoscopy, a health professional will tell you the results and explain any findings to you before you leave.
For every 500 people who take the test, only 10 will need to go for further investigation. Of these 10, only one will have bowel cancer.
Information in other languages and formats.
For alternative formats, please contact phs.otherformats@phs.scot
Our health information team can help you with any questions about bowel screening. You can speak to them using BSL through the Contact Scotland BSL service.