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A new home bowel test is being rolled out nationwide to help identify people most at risk of bowel cancer, freeing up colonoscopy capacity as the Government works to further lower the age for free bowel cancer screening.
Health Minister Simeon Brown said the new FIT for Symptomatic pathway would allow patients with bowel cancer symptoms to complete a simple home test, helping clinicians prioritise colonoscopies for those most at risk while freeing up specialist capacity to support further reductions in the bowel screening age.
“The Government is committed to lowering the screening age as fast as we can to match Australia, because catching bowel cancer earlier saves lives,” Brown said.
“It’s already come down from 60 to 58 nationwide, and from September it begins to drop to 56 – making more than 200,000 additional New Zealanders eligible for free screening over four years.
“We will keep going, and this new test is a key part of delivering that.”
Brown said the key to lowering the screening age quickly is ensuring colonoscopy capacity can keep up.
“Every time the age is lowered, more people become eligible, more results need follow-up, and more colonoscopies are required. Colonoscopies are the hardest part of the system to scale – each one needs a trained specialist, theatre time, and equipment,” he said.
Brown said capacity would need to be built across every stage of the bowel screening pathway to keep lowering the eligible age safely.
“We’re doing that in two ways. The first is direct investment in more diagnostic capacity, including additional colonoscopies, so more patients can be seen sooner.
“The second is better use of existing capacity – and that’s where the new test, rolling out nationwide from today, comes in.
“It helps identify who needs a colonoscopy, so we can prioritise those patients and keep reducing waiting times.”
Known as the FIT (faecal immunochemical test) for symptomatic pathway, the home test checks a stool sample for hidden traces of blood, an early indicator of bowel cancer. While it is the same test used in the national bowel screening programme, it has been calibrated to be more sensitive for people who already have symptoms, allowing clinicians to identify those at higher risk of serious bowel conditions and prioritise them for further investigation.
“Until now, many patients with bowel cancer symptoms have been referred for a colonoscopy, meaning they go on a wait list. This simple home test changes that, giving fast, reliable results within a few days of being returned, which helps clinicians prioritise care. Patients who need urgent investigation can be seen for a colonoscopy sooner,” Brown said.
Under the pathway, most patients referred by their GP to hospital with bowel cancer symptoms will be offered the test first. It is available to people aged 18 and over. Those with a positive result will be prioritised for a colonoscopy or an alternative bowel investigation.
Health New Zealand expects the test to reduce colonoscopy referrals for people with bowel cancer symptoms by up to 30%.
“That’s a significant amount of specialist capacity freed up, allowing people who need a colonoscopy to be seen faster, and reducing wait times,” Brown said.
“That freed-up capacity is what allows us to keep safely lowering the screening age.”
