NHS England has expanded its national bowel screening programme to people aged 54 so that cancers can be detected at an earlier stage when they are easier to
treat.
As part of the expansion, the health service would be sending a home-testing kit for bowel cancer, known as the Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT), to thousands more
people in the North West.
Those who are eligible (aged 54 and over) will now automatically receive the kit every two years by post, enabling them to self-check for blood in stool samples,
which can be a sign of bowel cancer.
With the expansion of the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme to people aged 54 years, an additional 830,000 people in England will now be eligible for the
screening test.
Great news for multiple sclerosis patients! The NHS has introduced a new 10-minute injection that can slow the progression of disability while reducing
hospital treatment time by over 90 per cent.
Currently, MS patients in England receive ocrelizumab (Ocrevus), manufactured by Roche, through twice-yearly intravenous (IV) infusions that can last up to
four hours.
Now, around 9,000 NHS patients in England will be able to receive the drug via a quick 'under-the-skin' twice-yearly injection. It takes just ten minutes,
enabling patients to spend less time in the hospital receiving treatment.
This roll-out follows approval from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), making the NHS one of the first healthcare systems
worldwide to offer this new MS injection. Drug stocks are expected to be available in the coming weeks.
