We’re being reminded about the importance of bowel cancer screening, as health authorities try to reduce the number of deaths through early detection.

60% of people are diagnosed with the life-threatening disease after it’s already spread.

NSW Health’s Doctor Kerry Chant tells Alan it might seem confronting, but sending off a sample of your stool could save your life.

“The instructions are fairly clear, the results will then get sent back to them.

“Then it’s important that once those tests results, if they do show something as in blood in the stools, then it’s important they do follow up with a colonoscopy.”

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