Grandmother saved by home cancer kit

Catherine Wigley was sent a Faecal Immuochemical Test

A woman has credited a cancer screening kit posted through her letterbox for saving her life.

Catherine Wigley was sent a Faecal Immuochemical Test (FIT), a use-at-home kit automatically sent to people in England aged between 60 and 74.

It came at a time the 67-year-old was experiencing changes in her bowel habits and needing to go to the toilet more often.

The retired childminder from Bloxwich, West Midlands, believes it is a lucky coincidence the test came through just before she was going to contact her GP for an appointment.

Within two weeks of her FIT test, Ms Wigley attended New Cross Hospital to have a colonoscopy.

She received her diagnosis the same day and spent 10 days in hospital after surgery to remove the cancer.

The Black Country woman then underwent preventative chemotherapy before being told her cancer had cleared.

Best present

Ms Wigley said the tests, diagnosis and treatment meant she was able to spend Christmas with her family, calling it the best present she could have wished for.

“Many people hear the word cancer and go to pieces as they feel this will lead to a negative outcome," she said.

"If more people participated in screening then hopefully there will be more positive stories like mine.”

She encouraged everyone to participate in the screening tests, which she said sped up her diagnosis and essentially saved her life.

Claire Higgs, bowel cancer screening specialist practitioner at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, added: "Catherine’s experience highlights the importance of completing the FIT kit.

"If you are sent an NHS bowel cancer screening kit, put it by the loo as a reminder and don’t put it off. It increases the chance of identifying bowel cancer at an early stage."

The programme is expanding to become available to everyone aged 50 to 59, with people asked to visit the NHS website to find out more information.