Bowel cancer cases in NL fall thanks to screening programme

The number of cases of advanced bowel cancer in the Netherlands have fallen in recent years, and the drop is probably down to the introduction of a national bowel cancer screening programme in 2014, according to monitoring body Integraal Kankercentrum Nederland (IKNL).

Bowel cancer is more common among older people and experts had expected an increase as the population gets older.  Instead, the number of people diagnosed with metastatic bowel cancer fell from 7,200 in 2013 to 5,900 in 2024, the most recent year for which figures are available.

Overall, 11,300 people were diagnosed with bowel cancer last year, compared with 13,000 in 2013, before screening was introduced.

Everyone in the Netherlands aged between 55 and 75 is invited every two years to take part in the bowel cancer screening programme. The test often detects early-stage cancer or pre-cancerous conditions, such as polyps with abnormal but still benign cells, which can usually be treated by removal.

“The decline in bowel cancer, and especially advanced bowel cancer, underlines the importance of screening and early detection,” said Carla van Gils, director of cancer charity KWF Kankerbestrijding. “Taking part increases the chance that cancer is found at an early stage, and that saves lives.”

The total number of cancer diagnoses has remained broadly stable over the past two years. Last year, 134,800 people were told they had cancer, compared with 134,700 in 2024.

Skin cancer was the most common form of cancer last year, followed by prostate cancer and breast cancer.

“Squamous cell carcinoma of the skin occurs mainly in people aged 75 and over,” Otto Visser, head of registration at the IKNL, told broadcaster NOS. “As the number of people over 75 continues to grow, we are also seeing an increase in this form of cancer.”

The number of prostate cancer diagnoses has also risen sharply. Visser said this is largely due to an ageing population, but also to changes in detection, including increased use of PSA blood tests, which can indicate the presence of a tumour.

Prostate cancer is often detected at a later stage because there is no national screening programme and because awareness among men remains limited, the IKNL said.

KWF Kankerbestrijding has money available to investigate how prostate cancer can be detected earlier and more effectively but the Health Council has yet to approve the research programme.