About colon cancer

If you're a non-smoker in the UK, male or female, colon cancer is the most likely cancer to kill you. 1 in 15 men and 1 in 18 women are at risk of developing this type of cancer
There are over 42,000 new cases of colon cancer each year in the UK (equating to around 115 people diagnosed each day), and over 16,800 deaths. This equates to an average of 46 lives lost every day
This needn’t be the case: colon cancer is one of the easiest cancers to treat if it is detected early. The really good news is that this cancer is also preventable in nearly all patients, through regular screening
If you have a test to look for colon cancer and its precursor polyps are detected, these can be easily removed, significantly reducing the risk of developing this type of cancer
Heightened awareness of colon cancer is essential, particularly for anyone over 45
Any abdominal symptoms or change in bowel habit should be discussed immediately with your doctor whatever your age. Please see our Symptoms page for more details of what to look out for
We recommend that you get screened for for colon cancer:
- Take up any screening that is offered to you by the NHS: please post back any poo tests sent to your home
- If you can, consider enhanced screening: 40tude recommends Colonoscopy or accredited CT Colonography every 5-7 years from your mid-40s

Early diagnosis saves lives

Please see our 'Getting Screened' page for more about the colon cancer screening options in the UK