Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Bowel cancer is a deadly and insidious disease. It is the kind of disease that sneaks up on you without you knowing that you have it. It is also a disease that if caught early enough can be treated and cured. That brings us to the motion that we have before us today. This is Bowel Cancer Month. It is time to raise awareness of every step possible that individual Australians can take to deal with this. They can undergo screening and treatment for this cancer. This is an issue that I am particularly passionate about. My father died of bowel cancer. He did not undergo any screening or testing. When it was discovered that he had bowel cancer it was far too late. He died a very painful death. Consequently, both my sister and I have had regular bowel screenings and if it had not been for those screenings we might have developed a similar type of cancer to that our father had. That shows that screening works. That is why the government has looked very seriously at screening.

I will give a few details on bowel cancer. Bowel cancer is also known as colorectal cancer, cancer of the colon or the rectum. It is Australia's second biggest killer. We have one of the highest rates of bowel cancer in the world. That can be attributed to a number of things. It can be attributed to diet, exercise, smoking, drinking—all those activities. It is interesting when you compare the types of behaviour that cause bowel cancer with the types of behaviour that lead to heart disease or stroke. There is a similarity, but by changing little things, we can change our predisposition to bowel cancer—for example, higher fibre, more exercise or you can give up smoking if you are a smoker. It is the kind of illness or disease that, by acting, you can really turn it around.

There are 277 new cases each week and out of those 277 cases that are diagnosed, 77 die. That is a very big percentage. You might as well say that about a quarter of the people diagnosed with bowel cancer die from the disease. Around 3,982 people die each year, and around 14,000 people are diagnosed each year, with 60 per cent of the people diagnosed with the disease surviving five years. Ninety per cent of cases can be treated successfully, and that is what I was talking about a moment ago. If a polyp is discovered, the polyp can be removed. If the cancer is contained within the colon or the rectum, it can be removed before it has a chance to impact on any other organs. Based on current trends in Australia, one in 12 people will develop bowel cancer before the age of 85. It is not men or women, it is all—both men and women are affected by bowel cancer.

Screening is the most effective way to detect the disease. Bowel cancer screening involves a test that is given to people before the obvious symptoms appear. The aim is to find polyps or bleeding early and then treat them.

It can develop without any sign or warning and usually does, and it can impact on people of any age. An electorate officer who worked for me had a daughter who was 33 years old and was diagnosed with bowel cancer. Unfortunately, the doctors did not believe that somebody so young could have bowel cancer, and she had really serious bowel cancer. Eventually, after treating her for all other symptoms with a number of treatments, they decided that they would check to see whether or not she had bowel cancer, and she did. She had very, very advanced bowel cancer. Family history is another important aspect in making sure that you take every step and every precaution possible to ensure that you do not get bowel cancer.

The risk is greater in a person who is over 50. Although I talked about the young woman who developed bowel cancer, somebody who is over 50 has a much greater chance of developing bowel cancer. If you have an inflammatory bowel disease or Crohn's Disease, that increases the chances of your developing bowel cancer. Two-yearly screening can reduce deaths by as much as 33 per cent. Last year I spoke in the House about a friend of mine whose wife would have been saved if she had had that screening.

The government has recognised the fact that screening is of such importance. That is why we have invested $16.1 million over four years to support the National Bowel Cancer Screening program. The member for New England has been very active in raising the issue of bowel cancer and screening within this parliament. The extra money that has been given to the National Bowel Cancer Screening program has been welcomed by the Cancer Council of Australia and Professor Ian Olver has stated his support for this program.

As I mentioned, this month is Bowel Cancer Month and this Wednesday is Red Aussie Apple Day, which aims to increase the awareness of bowel cancer and to reduce any embarrassment associated with the disease. A study done by the University of New England and the Hunter and New England Area Health Service on the Hunter community showed that 20 per cent of adults with bowel cancer symptoms such as bleeding have not consulted their doctor about their symptoms. That is a pretty big figure.

I know that Rotary is currently undertaking scans in my area. The screening involves taking a specimen and sending the specimen away for testing. You can also undergo a colonoscopy, like I do every few years. By doing those screening tests you can minimise your chances of developing bowel cancer. If you are having problems such as bleeding, consult your doctor. Do not be frightened. The thing to be frightened of is not consulting your doctor. I would encourage all members of this House to get behind the Red Aussie Apple Day and be very supportive of the campaign to raise awareness of bowel cancer in our community. As members of parliament, we need to get out into our communities and get the message out to people to change some behaviours. Change your eating patterns, include more fibre in your diet, exercise more and undergo regular screening tests. This will minimise your chance of developing serious bowel cancer. Catch it early. Act now.(Time expired)

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