BowelScreen program launch
June 7, 2010
THE Pharmacy
Guild on Friday
officially launched
its new BowelScreen
program (PD 18
May) at Harrisons
Pharmacy in
Sydney’s Broadway
shopping centre.
The pharmacybased
awareness,
education and
screening program
is a collaboration
between Bowel
Cancer Australia
and the Pharmacy Guild.
“There was an opportunity to
partner (with Bowel Cancer
Australia) to get maximum
exposure to people likely to be in
the target (bowel cancer) group,”
Paul Sinclair, community
pharmacist and Guild national
councillor told PD.
“Community pharmacists, as the
most accessible healthcare
providers, are ideally placed to take
an active role in the delivery of
preventative health initiatives such
as this important screening
program,” he added.
In development since the
beginning of the year, the program
centres on an Enterix screening test
which can be purchased by anyone
aged 50 years and over.
The take home immunochemical
faecal occult blood testing kit
comes in a standard BowelScreen
Australia branded envelope.
Simpler than the National
Screening test kit, users do not
need to make any dietary or
medication changes before the test,
and they do not need to handle the
faeces as the kit utilises “brush
technology” meaning that they only
need a sample from their own toilet
brush to send into Enterix Australia
for pathology analysis.
The test also differs from the govt
program in that it provides
screening for all Australians aged
over 50 years, it includes reminders
for annual rescreening and is widely
available throughout the year.
“Bowel cancer claims the lives of
73 Australians every week, making
it our second biggest cancer killer,”
said Julien Wiggins, ceo of Bowel
Cancer Australia.
The test costs $20.95 plus a
$15.40 standard pathology charge,
and the costs may be rebatable via
Medicare or health funds depending
on individual circumstances.
Currently the BowelScreen
Australia website is directing users
to participating pharmacies,
however this function will soon be
launched on the Guild website also.
Pictured above at Friday’s launch
are, from left: Bowel Cancer
Australia ceo Julien Wiggins; Judy
Readman, gm Enterix Australia;
and Paul Sinclair.
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