Bowel Cancer Awareness Month – April 2018

Bowel Cancer is the second biggest killer cancer in the UK. Each year in the UK over 41,200 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer yet when diagnosed early it can be treatable and curable. However, only 15% of people are diagnosed with the earliest stages of the disease.

Screening can detect bowel cancer at an early stage even in people with no symptoms. 9 out of 10 people diagnosed early with stage 1 bowel cancer survive 5 years or more after diagnosis however this can drop significantly as the disease develops. There is only a small chance that bowel cancer will come back after 5 years.

There are around 268,000 people living in the UK today that have been diagnosed with bowel cancer with almost 16,000 people each year in the UK dying from bowel cancer.

Bowel cancer can affect any age although more than 9 out of 10 cases are people over the age of 50 years and nearly 6 out of 10 cases are people over 70 years. Some common symptoms of bowel cancer include:

• Bleeding from the bottom and blood in poo
• Persistent and unexplained change in bowel habit
• Sudden and unexplained weight loss
• Being easily fatigued with no obvious reason or cause
• Pain or a lump in the tummy

Sarah Blagg, a Solicitor in the Clinical Negligence Department has recognised a growing number of medical professionals failing to diagnose generally, or detect the common symptoms, of bowel cancer leading to a less favourable outcome for the individual involved.

At Williamsons Solicitors we have the skills, knowledge and staff to help you win your clinical negligence case. Our specialist Clinical Negligence Department has more than 35 years’ combined experience in the field and we are recognised by top industry bodies including Action Against Medical Accidents (AvMA) and The Law Society.

If you have been affected by a case similar to this, please contact Sarah Blagg, Solicitor, on 01482 323697.

For more information about Bowel Cancer Awareness Month visit www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk