GP Diagnosed with Bowel Cancer at 49 Urges Screening Changes
Dr Jonny Dillon was shocked to learn he had bowel cancer at the age of 49, especially given his medical background as a doctor. Despite generally feeling unwell, he exhibited no bowel symptoms but required surgery just two days after his 50th birthday.
He expressed strong frustration that Northern Ireland's bowel cancer screening programme is behind the rest of the UK. The Department of Health (DoH) has indicated that efforts to expand the programme are ongoing.
Currently, bowel cancer screening in Northern Ireland is offered to individuals aged 60 to 74, whereas in England, Scotland, and Wales, screening begins at age 50.
Northern Ireland is also the only UK region that has not lowered the threshold for the amount of blood detected in the home screening test (faecal immunochemical test, FIT) that triggers further investigation, which would enable earlier detection of more bowel cancers.
Dillon advocates for expanding the "excellent screening programme in Northern Ireland" by lowering the starting age from 60 to 50 and reducing the blood level threshold for further investigations to align with other UK nations.
"I'm calling for the age to be brought down in Northern Ireland from 60 down to 50 and also for the level at which you get further investigations to be reduced in line with England, Scotland, Wales."
"That will pick up cancers or pre cancers at a much earlier stage. It will cost money upfront, but that will save money because people will be picked up and it will ultimately save many lives."
The Banbridge GP described his diagnosis as a "huge shock." Since the cancer had not spread, he did not require chemotherapy or radiotherapy and was able to return to work within six months.
"As a GP, I would know that bowel cancer is unusual to have under 50, but we're seeing that the number of people with bowel cancer is increasing."
According to the Northern Ireland cancer registry, the median age of patients diagnosed with colorectal (bowel) cancer between 2018 and 2022 was 71 years. Notably, 11.1% of patients diagnosed were under 55.
Why Bowel Screening Is Important
Bowel cancer is among the most common cancers in the UK. Screening involves a faecal immunochemical test (FIT), which detects blood in a stool sample.
This test can identify cancer at an early stage when symptoms are not yet present and treatment is more effective. It can also detect polyps that may develop into cancer. Polyps can be removed easily, reducing cancer risk.
Individuals eligible for screening who are registered with a GP receive a home FIT kit by post every two years.
Dillon highlighted that people aged 50 to 59 in Northern Ireland are missing five potential screening opportunities.
In January, NHS England announced it would begin using a more sensitive home stool screening kit, aligning with Scotland and Wales.
In England, Scotland, and Wales, the threshold for blood detected in FITs that triggers further investigation is 80 micrograms of blood per gram of stool. In Northern Ireland, this threshold remains at 120 micrograms.
Lowering this level would result in more people being referred for colonoscopies to diagnose or rule out bowel cancer.
"This isn't screening for a head cold. This is screening for cancer. This is screening for a condition that could result in major surgery or even take your life," Dillon said.
"And if we don't do it, we're resulting in more people losing their life or having to go through major treatment."
Patient Experience Highlights Screening Need
One of Dillon's patients, Marie McGrath, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in January 2026 at age 52.
She led a healthy lifestyle and had not considered bowel cancer a possibility, believing it affected older individuals.
"Bowel cancer, for me if there were tick boxes, I wouldn't be ticking any boxes.
It was only in my view because of the professional awareness of my GP, and unfortunately, his own personal experience that I feel I was picked up and picked up well and picked up in time."
Marie consulted her GP about an upset stomach that persisted after a holiday last summer. A colonoscopy revealed a lesion "of a significant size and of a significant concern."
"I think I went a bit blank, if I'm very honest. She can't really be saying these words to me. This is a tummy bug," she recalled.
"To have a screening age set at 60, I'm wondering would I have made it to 60 if I hadn't got the GP and the circumstances at the time?
Had my symptoms maybe been put down to irritable bowel for example, that could have been ongoing for a much longer period of time. What would my chances have been then?
If much younger people are being affected, why is the threshold so high for us to be diagnosed and diagnosed at an early stage? It just is unfathomable to me."
Calls for Urgent Action from Advocacy Groups
Genevieve Edwards, Chief Executive of Bowel Cancer UK, stated that Northern Ireland is "falling dangerously behind" in screening efforts.
"If bowel cancer is diagnosed at its earliest stage, more than nine people in 10 will survive it," she said.
"It's treatable, it's curable if it's diagnosed early.
But we know that one in four people are currently diagnosed in A&E. And that's not the place to find out you've got bowel cancer when your symptoms are advanced, your cancer's advanced, and it's much harder to treat successfully."
She urged the Northern Ireland Executive to "lower the screening age to 50 without delay."
Department of Health Response
The Department of Health stated that the Northern Ireland Cancer Strategy (2022-32) includes commitments to reduce the sensitivity levels used in FITs and to lower the age range for the Bowel Cancer Screening Programme, consistent with UK National Screening Committee recommendations.
It noted that work to expand the screening programme is ongoing but must be considered within the context of broader financial and capacity challenges in supporting services.
"Where a screening programme expands its eligibility, it is important that the associated infrastructure, including diagnostic capacity, workforce and any treatments that may be required, are aligned,"the DoH added.
