Bowel Cancer NZ Medical Advisor Professor Frank Frizelle said bowel cancer is rising in younger patients at a concerning rate.
Prof Frizelle said colon cancer has risen by 14 percent and rectal cancer by 18 percent in men under 50 alone in the past decade.
“In the next decade, it’s estimated that one in 10 colon cancers and one in four rectal cancers will be diagnosed in adults younger than 50.”
But despite this, the age for bowel cancer screening is 60 years old.
The government plans to lower the age for Māori patients to 50, but Bowel Cancer NZ would like to see it go further and lower it to 45 for all Kiwis.
