By RNZ

Investigative journalist Lucie Morris-Marr was a fit and healthy 44-year-old mother of two when she received a shock diagnosis of invasive stage four bowel cancer.

Morris-Marr, a British award-winning writer and broadcaster based in Australia, was about to start a press tour for her book on abuse in the Catholic Church, when she received the news.

Bowel cancer survivor’s deep dive into processed meat industry

“When you get a diagnosis like this... it’s still really shocking,” Morris-Marr told Nine to Noon.

“I was flying high, my book had just come out. I was invited to festivals and speeches. I was really excited and happy, and then all of it got cancelled and I felt like my identity had been cancelled.”

Despite plenty of support from family and friends, cancer treatment was a lonely journey, so Morris-Marr filled her time at home after treatment researching bowel cancer and its causes. She was horrified to learn that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had found strong evidence linking processed meats and colorectal cancer, classifying them in the same category as tobacco and alcohol.

“All that kept coming up was processed meats and the link with bowel cancer,” she said.

Lucie Morriss-Marr is an award-winning investigative journalist based in Australia. Photo / @lucieinvestigates

She didn’t think she was a huge eater of processed meat, but as she sat there, with time on her hands, she began to realise she consumed more than she thought.

“I started to go ‘I did like the prosciutto on the melon on the charcuterie boards, I did have the odd sausage at Bunnings’ and I started to think yes, it was in my diet.”

She thought about eating almost a kilogram of ham around Christmas every year, bringing bacon sandwiches camping and ordering pepperoni pizza on Fridays.

“I still, to this day, don’t claim that was the cause of my bowel cancer, because I’ll never know. There’s lots of other factors it can be. But I started to think, ‘look it’s in the frame, it’s one of the suspects’ and I just felt very angry about it.

“Where were the warning labels? Where were the health campaigns?

“I’m not starting this food scare but someone needs to amplify it.”

In Morris-Marr’s new book, Processed, she shares her own experience with cancer while uncovering the scientific evidence.

Morris-Marr's new book, Processed.

What do experts say about processed meats and cancer?

Processed meat refers to products that have been made through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation.

It includes things such as such as luncheon, salami, ham, bacon and some sausages.

The WHO in 2015 classified processed meats as a Group 1 carcinogen which means there is “convincing evidence that the agent causes cancer”. It came to this conclusion after considering more than 400 epidemiological studies on processed meat.

Studies found the risk of colorectal cancer from processed meats generally increased with the amount consumed. The WHO said an analysis of data from 10 studies estimated that every 50 gram portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by about 18% - that’s roughly two rashers of bacon each day.

The WHO has also classified red meat as Group 2A which means it is “probably carcinogenic to humans” but it did note that eating meat has known health benefits, and many national health recommendations advised a limit.

New Zealand Eating and Activity Guidelines for cooked red meat is less than 500g per week (71.4g on average per day) and a limit on processed meats.

Professor of Colorectal Surgery at the University of Otago and Bowel Cancer NZ medical advisor Frank Frizelle told RNZ 80% to 85% of bowel cancer cases are sporadic, without any significant family history.

Processed meat like bacon and sausages are made through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation. Photo / Getty Images

He said foods like processed meat and red meat can increase the production of toxins in your gut. While foods high in fibre turn the toxins off.

“It’s a bit like sun-damaged skin. When you get sunburnt it comes back to bite you when you’re older,” Frizelle said.

Frizelle recommended eating processed and red meats in moderation.

“It’s very hard to get through your life in our world without eating processed foods.”

Frizelle said there had been a rise in bowel cancer amongst those aged under 50 in New Zealand. Symptoms of the disease included changes in bowel motions/habits, rectal bleeding, anaemia, severe persistent or periodic abdominal pain, a lump or mass in the abdomen, tiredness and loss of weight for no obvious reason.

If anyone if experiencing these symptoms they should see their doctor and be persistent, Frizelle said.

“It’s really important young people push back on medical pushback,” Frizelle said.

“If you feel you are being brushed off, you probably are.”

Lucie Morris-Marr and her family.

How to change your deli meat-loving habits

Morris-Marr suggested thinking of your favourites as a treat and buying good quality, nitrate-free if possible.

She also recommended swapping out processed meats with something like organic chicken or cheese.

“Say if you’re at brunch, and that’s really when you want to have some bacon, right, that saltiness next to the egg and tomatoes. I found ordering halloumi really good or mushrooms, where you’ve got nice herbs in there and salt and pepper ... It just works really well.”

“I also say in the book this is your body, your rules. I’m not a nutritionist, it’s not my place to tell people what to eat. I just want people to be informed ... and then make their own decisions.”

Morris-Marr is now cancer-free after receiving a liver transplant, which was where her cancer kept returning, around a year ago. While she still has some complications from her transplant, she is delighted and honoured that she’s had this “incredible gift”.

“For someone who got diagnosed over five years ago with stage four bowel cancer ... when you get told it’s in your liver as well, it was a terminal diagnosis,” she said.

“To now be sitting here saying I am cancer-free is a miracle.”

- RNZ