This little test could save your life
The National Bowel Screening Programme is free for men and women aged 60 to 74 years who are eligible for publicly-funded healthcare. It aims to save lives by finding bowel cancer at an early stage when it can often be successfully treated.
The test is quick, clean and simple to do. You do it by yourself at home.
If you’re eligible to take part, you will be sent:
• an invitation letter
• a consent form
• a free bowel screening test kit, with instructions on how to use it.
This will happen not long after your 60th birthday.
Done it once? Do it again.
Screening is offered every two years, so if you have done a test before and returned a negative result, you will be offered a second test two years after you did the first one if you are still eligible. Your second test is just as important as the first one.
Haven’t quite gotten there yet?
If you received a test kit in the post in the past two years but didn’t complete it, you will be given another chance to take the test. You will be sent a test kit two years after you were sent the first one if you are still eligible.
Worried about your bowel health?
The programme is for people who do not have any symptoms of bowel cancer. It is a preventative programme that finds bowel cancer at an early stage before you may notice any symptoms.
If you are experiencing symptoms, such as a change in your normal bowel movements that continues for several weeks or blood in your bowel motion (poo), it is important to seek advice from a doctor who may refer you for a specialist assessment.
If you are aged 60-74 and experiencing symptoms, don’t wait to receive your test kit in the post – see a doctor as soon as you can. The same applies if you are younger than 60, or older than 74.
Please do not hesitate to raise any questions or concerns about this life-saving test with your family doctor, or with a health professional available on the free helpline: 0800 924 432
Say goodbye to tyre waste
About 40% of the 6.5 million tyres Kiwis use every year are recycled, repurposed, or used as tyre-derived fuel. But the rest end up in landfills, stockpiled or dumped.
The good news is now there’s an easy solution to all that tyre waste. It’s called Tyrewise and is New Zealand’s first national tyre recycling scheme.
Tyrewise ensures that tyres in Aotearoa New Zealand are recycled or repurposed properly, saving millions from going to the landfill.
Find out more about the scheme online.
Have you got a great recipe for chokos?
We're looking for delicious choko recipes to feature in NZ Gardener's June issue. Send your family's favourite ways to eat this versatile crop to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz by April 30, 2024. Every published recipe wins a copy of the June issue of NZ Gardener.
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With the many friends she has made and the special bond she shares with her caregivers, the village has become an extension of Dora’s family.
Click to learn more about Dora’s experience at a Ryman village.
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