Tracey O’Brien: More people will be eligible for free screening test for bowel cancer in Australia

Tracey O’Brien shared on LinkedIn:

“Let’s talk about poo.

No one likes to read about it or talk about it, but when it comes to bowel cancer, we need to get over the ‘ick’ factor and start facing some harsh realities.

– Australia has one of the highest incidents of bowel cancer in the world
– Bowel cancer remains our nation’s second biggest cancer killer
– We have a free screening test, yet less than 40 per cent of eligible people in NSW are taking advantage of it.

From tomorrow, more people will be eligible to do the test. Lowering the screening age from 50 to 45 will hopefully start an important conversation and encourage more people to screen.

While our bowel cancer risk increases with age, it can affect anyone – something Sancha (who was just 31 years old when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer) knows all too well. I urge you to read her story, and that of 68-year-old Vicki.

It may feel icky, but a 5 minute test, in the comfort of your own home, could quite simply be the difference between life and death.

Don’t let your perceptions of the test impact your judgement. Pull that test out of your drawer and do it today.

Read Sancha and Vicki’s stories and find out how you can reduce your bowel cancer risk.”

Source: Tracey O’Brien/LinkedIn

Dr. Tracey O’Brien is the NSW Chief Cancer Officer and CEO of the Cancer Institute NSW, Australia. Before her current role, Tracey was Director of the Kids Cancer Centre, Sydney Children’s Hospital, and Director of the Transplant & Cellular Therapy Program.

Tracey has held numerous high-profile national and international leadership positions, including Advisory Chair, Cancer Australia; V/Chair (Africa, Asia and Australasia) International Centre for Bone Marrow Transplant Research and V/President of the Australian and New Zealand Children’s Oncology Group.

In recognition of her exceptional contributions, Tracey was profiled in 2023 as one of the world’s foremost women in paediatric cancer by the International Society of Paediatric Oncology. In 2019 Tracey was named in the Australian Financial Review’s prestigious Top 10 Women of Influence, winning the Innovation category. In addition to her medical expertise, Tracey has a Master of Law (Health) and executive MBA and serves as a conjoint Professor in Clinical Medicine (UNSW) and Honorary Professor in Science and Engineering (Macquarie University).

Dr. O’Brien remains committed to mentoring the next generation of clinician leaders and maintains an active clinical practice in cancer survivorship at Sydney Children’s Hospital.