When Dame Deborah James passed away last year, she was only forty years old. Dame Deborah was diagnosed with bowel cancer at the scarily young age of thirty six and spent almost all the time she had after her diagnosis doing an amazing job raising awareness of the illness and raising money for research. She became a patron of the charity Bowel Cancer UK.

What is not generally known is that bowel cancer is not exclusive to the over fifties, and although the NHS England screening programme currently sends everyone aged sixty to seventy four a screening kit every two years, this does not mean this awful disease only affects older people. Approximately two thousand six hundred cases are diagnosed every year in the under fifties.

Do you know the symptoms? Possibly not. If you would like to learn more about the signs to be aware of, and the treatment that can be offered, please come along to the Methodist Church Hall on Monday, 20th February at 6 p.m. to listen to Dr. Charlie Andrews. Apart from being a GP at St Chads, Dr Andrews also has an extended role in Gastroenterology at the RUH. where he runs a weekly outpatient clinic.

This talk has been organised by the Friends of St Chad’s and Chilcompton Surgeries, but the talk is open to patients from ANY local surgery. There is no charge. For further information please ring Jenny Evans on 01761 232 244.

Jenny Evans