The Government has announced a new bowel cancer screening test, known as the “Flexiscope”, which could save up to 3,000 lives a year. A 16-year clinical trial, co-funded by Cancer Research UK and published in the Lancet medical journal earlier this year, revealed that 10,000 people each year will avoid bowel cancer as a result of incorporating the Flexi-scope test into the national bowel screening programme.
The study also suggests that deaths from the disease will drop by almost half (43%) among those who attend screening. Now, the Government has confirmed that a £60 million investment will enable the test to be rolled out nationwide over the next four years. The announcement was made as part of a wider action plan to deliver better outcomes for patients through earlier diagnosis and faster treatment. As well as introducing the Flexi-scope test, the Government also plans to invest £50 million in additional cancer drugs this year, provide funding for an extra 1,200 cancer specialists by 2012 and expand the health service’s radiotherapy capacity. A £10.75 million awareness campaign will also focus on the signs and symptoms of breast, lung and bowel cancers.
