Irish Cancer Society’s bowel cancer web page is most visited cancer on website

Bowel Cancer is the most visited cancer on the Irish Cancer Society’s website www.cancer.ie.

In 2014, there were almost 80,000 visits to the bowel cancer information pages, second only to the homepage and accounting for almost 8% of the traffic to www.cancer.ie in 2014.

Visitor numbers to the main bowel cancer signs and symptoms page were significantly higher than similar pages for other cancers.

The total number of visitors to the signs and symptoms page for bowel cancer was over three times the number of visitors to the prostate cancer pages (25,000) and four times the number of visitors to the breast cancer pages (20,000) in the same time period. As well as that;

As well as that;

• 71% of visitors were female
   
• The highest number of visitors were in the 25-34 age bracket (26%) with the next highest cohort falling into the 35-44 age bracket ( 25%), followed by 45-54 year olds (15%)
   
• The highest number of users lived in Dublin (52%) followed by Cork (4%) and Galway (3%) and Limerick (2.2%)
   
• Top key words included bowel cancer, colon cancer, bowel cancer signs, colon cancer symptoms, bowel movement and bleeding anus.

Each year approximately 2,400 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer in Ireland. It is the second most common cause of cancer death and approximately 1,000 people die from it.

Joan Kelly, Nursing Services Manager at the Irish Cancer Society said,  “Bowel cancer is a cancer that affects both men and women but there still remains a high embarrassment factor that people feel when discussing the signs and symptoms. The fact that it is the most visited section of our website bears this out. Some people feel awkward mentioning symptoms to family, friends and even their GP so they look elsewhere for their information and support,” she said.

“Our worry is that reluctance in seeking help when someone notices an unusual sign or symptom may mean a delay in diagnosis. Bowel cancer is extremely treatable once it’s caught early, however we are still seeing almost 50% of bowel cancers diagnosed at stage three and four when more complex treatments are required. As a result, bowel cancer mortality rates remain steady since 2006 at 40% .
 
“We are urging people to spot bowel cancer early and be aware of the early warning signs of bowel cancer and if they have any concerns, call 1800 200 700 to speak to a cancer nurse or speak to their GP.”

We are also calling on people to b aware of how they can reduce their risk of bowel cancer.

Research has found that adults who increase their physical activity and have a healthy diet can reduce their risk of developing bowel cancer by 30 to 40 per cent . Currently, over one third of the over 50s in Ireland are obese, a further 44 per cent are overweight and about one third of the over 50s report low levels of physical activity.  It is estimated that 30 to 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity every day offers the best protection against bowel cancer .

Members of the public are also reminded to take part in the national bowel cancer screening programme BowelScreen when invited to do so. BowelScreen is a government funded service delivered by the National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS), men and women aged 60 – 69 years are currently being called for screening. In 2013, the Irish Cancer Society donated €1 million to BowelScreen which will be used to purchase equipment in hospitals around Ireland and support the continued rollout of the bowel cancer screening programme.

The Irish Cancer Society is appealing to the public not to be embarrassed about any symptoms they may be experiencing and to remember that early detection saves lives.

Anyone who is concerned should call the Irish Cancer Society’s National Cancer Helpline on 1800 200 700. The Irish Cancer Society is working towards a future without cancer and we won’t give up until cancer does.

Find out more about how you can reduce your risk of bowel cancer on our bowel cancer awareness homepage.