Healthdirect Free Australian health advice you can count on.

Medical problem? Call 1800 022 222. If you need urgent medical help, call triple zero immediately

healthdirect Australia is a free service where you can talk to a nurse or doctor who can help you know what to do.

beginning of content

Bowel cancer screening

6-minute read

Key facts

  • Bowel cancer screening tests can detect bowel cancer early, before you have symptoms.
  • Bowel cancer can be cured if it’s found early.
  • An immunochemical faecal occult blood test (iFOBT) is a type of bowel cancer screening test.
  • People aged between 45 and 74 years will be sent a free screening test kit every 2 years.

Why is bowel cancer screening important?

A bowel cancer screening test can show early signs of bowel cancer. It can show up signs of cancer even before you have symptoms. Screening tests are different from other tests done when there are signs of sickness. Screening can find a cancer at an early stage. Bowel cancer can be cured if it’s found early.

Bowel cancer can grow inside your bowel for many years. There are often no signs until the cancer gets bigger. In Australia, about 100 people die each week from bowel cancer. This number could be much smaller if people had screening tests to find cancer early.

Who can get a free bowel screening test?

If you are aged between 45 to 74 years, the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program will send you a screening test every 2 years, if you have a Medicare card and are one of the following:

  • an Australian citizen
  • a permanent migrant
  • registered as a Department of Veteran Affairs customer

If you are eligible and aged between 45 to 49 years, you can request your first bowel cancer screening kit to be mailed to you.

If you are eligible and aged between 50 to 74 years, you will continue to receive a bowel cancer screening kit in the mail every 2 years.

What is an immunochemical faecal occult blood test?

An immunochemical faecal occult blood test (iFOBT), also called a faecal occult blood test, or FOBT, is a type of bowel cancer screening test. You need to collect samples of your stool (poo). These samples are tested and can show up tiny amounts of blood.

A test kit has all the instructions you need. It also has a reply-paid envelope so you can send back your poo samples. Your test results are sent to you and your doctor. You can do the test in private at home.

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners recommends that iFOBTs should be used to screen for bowel cancer in people who are not at high risk of bowel cancer. A colonoscopy may be used for people at high risk of bowel cancer. For more information, see your doctor or visit Choosing Wisely Australia.

Frequently asked questions

What if I already have blood in my poo?

If you have already have symptoms, such as blood in your stool (poo), you should see your doctor. You should not wait for your test kit.

You should also see your doctor if there are changes to your bowel habits. These can be:

  • a feeling like you have not finished on the toilet or that you still need to do more
  • looser bowel motions or severe constipation (not being able to poo)

If you have any of these signs, don't wait for your kit. See your doctor.

You should also see your doctor if you have a family history of bowel cancer.

How do I do the test?

There are instructions in the home test kit. Everything you need to do the test is in the kit. You need to test 2 bowel motions (poo). This can be on the same day.

When you do the test, put a paper sheet (from the kit) into the toilet to collect your poo. You then use the stick from the kit to get a bit of poo from the paper. You put the stick in a tube. You can then flush the rest of your poo and the paper away.

After you have collected 2 samples, you post the tubes to the lab for testing.

How much poo do I need to collect?

You only need to collect a little bit of poo for testing. It needs to be the size of a grain of rice.

Does it matter what I eat?

You can eat normally before and after the test. You can also take any medicines as usual.

What if my poos are hard or soft?

The stool (poo) is collected on a paper sheet that you put into the toilet. Both hard and soft stools will be caught on the paper. It does not matter which type of stool you have.

Why do I need to collect 2 samples?

Collecting 2 samples makes the test more accurate. It increases the chance of finding blood in your poo. Blood in the poo can be a sign of bowel cancer.

The samples need to be taken from 2 different bowel motions (different toilet visits). It’s best if they are done as close in time to each other as possible.

How and when will I receive the test results?

Your results are posted to you after a few weeks.

What happens if my test is positive?

A positive test can be caused by many things that are not bowel cancer. Sometimes a positive iFOBT can be caused by polyps or haemorrhoids. These are not cancer.

If your iFOBT is positive, you should see your doctor. The doctor may ask you to do more tests. One of these tests is called a ‘colonoscopy’. This test lets a doctor look at the inside of your large bowel using a camera in a flexible tube. The doctor can take samples of your bowel to do more tests.

Resources and support

For more information on when you will receive a screening kit, visit the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program.

If you want to know more about bowel cancer screening, talk to your doctor or call healthdirect on 1800 022 222 (known as NURSE-ON-CALL in Victoria). A registered nurse is available to speak to, 24 hours, 7 days a week.

Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.

Last reviewed: September 2022


Back To Top

Need more information?

These trusted information partners have more on this topic.

Top results

Bowel cancer screening

Once you turn 50 years of age, you are eligible for a free bowel screening test in the prevention of bowel cancer. The bowel cancer screening program describes what the test involves and at what future ages you are eligible for testing.

Read more on WA Health website

Bowel cancer screening | Cancer Council

Regular bowel cancer screening using an FOBT kit can pick up pre-cancerous polyps. Find out more about tests to help diagnose bowel cancer.

Read more on Cancer Council Australia website

Bowel cancer screening - Better Health Channel

The National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) offers kits for free to Australians between the ages of 50 and 74 years of age.

Read more on Better Health Channel website

Bowel cancer screening | Cancer Institute NSW

Australia has one of the highest incidence of bowel cancer in the world—find out why screening is important and how you can take part in the bowel screening program.

Read more on Cancer Institute NSW website

How to do the test – Indigenous bowel screening video | Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care

This video for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people explains how to do the bowel cancer screening test. The test is part of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program.

Read more on Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care website

Bowel Screening | SA Health

The National Bowel Cancer Screening Program involves testing for bowel cancer in eligible people who do not have any obvious symptoms of the disease.

Read more on SA Health website

Bowel cancer | Causes, Symptoms & Treatments | Cancer Council

Find information about bowel cancer, including facts, screening, symptoms and diagnosis, causes, prevention and treatment.

Read more on Cancer Council Australia website

Small Bowel Cancer | Cancer Council

Find information about small bowel cancer, including facts, screening, symptoms, diagnosis, causes, prevention and treatment.

Read more on Cancer Council Australia website

Understanding your FOBT results | Cancer Council

Bowel cancer can develop without early warning signs or symptoms. Read our latest information on symptoms, screening and how to reduce your risk

Read more on Cancer Council Australia website

Faecal occult blood test - myDr.com.au

Faecal occult blood test is a chemical test that can detect tiny traces of blood in the stool that may indicate the presence of bowel cancer or a precancerous polyp.

Read more on MyDoctor website

Healthdirect 24hr 7 days a week hotline

24 hour health advice you can count on

1800 022 222

Government Accredited with over 140 information partners

We are a government-funded service, providing quality, approved health information and advice

Australian Government, health department logo ACT Government logo New South Wales government, health department logo Northen Territory Government logo Queensland Government logo Government of South Australia, health department logo Tasmanian government logo Victorian government logo Government of Western Australia, health department logo

Healthdirect Australia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners and to Elders both past and present.