Fianna Fáil Galway City East councillor, Alan Cheevers, is calling for the screening age for bowel cancer to be reduced from its current age range of 60 to 69, to 50 to 69 instead.
Currently, only those between the ages of 60 and 69 are invited to take a bowel screening test every two years. Cllr Cheevers, aged 52, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in September.
Cllr Cheevers has since begun a campaign to lower the screening age for bowel cancer, and as part of that he met with An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, and others, at Leinster House this week.
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“In the middle of September this year, I was diagnosed with bowel cancer, said Cllr Cheevers, “and as part of my diagnosis, I felt I wanted to do something positive and that was to raise awareness and to make a representation to the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, to reduce bowel screening from 60 to 69, down to 50 to 69.
“I think lowering the screening age is really important. I think that there's a stigma with many men, especially in getting checked. If we can reduce the age profile, so that more people will get checked, we can work towards early detection and saving lives.”
