Hansard

I thank my Conservative colleague and good friend Edward Mountain for bringing up this topic for discussion. My mother had a tumour in her bowel, went through the process and, luckily, survived.

We know that this subject is very close to Edward’s heart, having announced three years ago that he was receiving treatment for bowel cancer. Many of us are fully aware of Edward’s treatment for that condition and of the journey that he took. Since then, he has become a formidable advocate for bowel cancer awareness by encouraging others to look after their health and to get checked for early signs of the disease. His commendable actions, together with his sheer determination and courage to battle bowel cancer, stand as a shining example to all of us here tonight. He has won great admiration from members across the political divide—deservedly so—for being so forthright and honest in his health battle. I am sure that we can all join to praise his resilience and advocacy.

As we have heard in previous members’ business debates on cancers, it is often all about statistics—some are good, some are very worrying, and there are others that simply cannot be ignored as much as we would possibly like to. Bowel cancer is no different. It is the fourth most common cancer but, sadly, it is the second biggest cancer killer. Some 44,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with the disease every year and, tragically, just under half of them lose their lives, including 1,700 people here in Scotland.

However, we need not have that sorry outcome, as bowel cancer is treatable and curable if it is diagnosed early enough. In fact, nine out of 10 people will survive if diagnosed at the earliest stages—1 or 2. Key to saving lives is diagnosing patients earlier, yet only 40 per cent of cases in Scotland are caught before the disease has spread. That must change if we are to achieve our vision of a future in which nobody dies of bowel cancer.

Encouragingly, bowel screening uptake in NHS Dumfries and Galloway was just under 70 per cent between 2022 and 2024, which is higher than Scotland’s national average of around 65 per cent. However, there are more than 160 new diagnoses of bowel cancer each year in my constituency, and the incidence rate is higher than the national average. The bowel cancer mortality rate is thankfully lower than the national average, although there are still more than 45 deaths from the disease in NHS Dumfries and Galloway annually. Presently, nearly 3,500 people in the area are waiting for a diagnostic test for bowel cancer, while 95 per cent of people in the constituency start treatment within the 62-day target following an urgent referral.

In the south-west of Scotland, the overall picture is looking promising, although much still needs to be done to improve the figures even further in the times ahead. There remains an onus on the Scottish Government to initiate bold steps to improve early diagnosis of bowel cancer and to improve patient outcomes. We have heard that one way to do that is to introduce a test with extra sensitivity, which I hope the health secretary and his minister who is in the chamber tonight will fully take on board as we strive to get the figures down even further.

Bowel cancer screening remains one of the best ways to diagnose people early, with the UK National Screening Committee recommending that people aged between 50 and 74 are invited to be screened every two years. Health experts say that screening can save lives, yet only 66 per cent of people who are eligible to take up the offer in Scotland do so. More must be done to encourage them if we are to seriously win the battle.

Another barrier that must be overcome to improve early diagnosis is that of the long-standing staff shortages in endoscopy and pathology services. Again, I urge the Scottish Government to act to relieve the pressure on diagnostic services by tackling workforce issues.

As my colleague Edward Mountain has shown this evening, this is a battle that can be won if the right ammunition is put in place. We owe it to him and others like him to give them a fighting chance.