The bowel cancer screening programme has ticked over a significant milestone, with two million home-screening kits distributed across New Zealand.

Health Minister Dr Shane Reti marked the milestone at an event in Penrose.

Since the programme began a national roll-out in 2017, it has picked up 2495 cancers.

“A third of these were at an early stage, where there is a greater than 90 per cent chance of five-year survival,” Reti said.

“That’s almost two-and-a-half-thousand New Zealanders who can thank the programme, which has also detected thousands of pre-cancerous polyps – growths in the bowel which can become cancerous if left untreated.”

New Zealanders are invited to take part in the free screening every two years from the age of 60 to 74 years.

The screening programme began after a pilot scheme in the old Waitematā District Health Board between 2011 and 2017, covering 50- to 74-year-olds.

It was expanded into a national programme in 2017, with the minimum age raised to 60.

The Government has committed to lowering the age for everyone to 55 years old, after a commitment by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon during the election campaign.

That was in response to campaigns which highlighted lower age thresholds in comparable countries, and the growth of bowel cancer cases among younger populations.

Reti has previously said the age would be lowered during this Parliamentary term, but few other details have been released.

Concerns have been raised about the health system’s capacity to provide additional colonoscopies and surgeries under a lower screening age.

Reti told the Herald in May: “As was the case with the announcement to raise the age of breast screening, any decision to adjust eligibility for screening has significant clinical, workforce and funding implications to consider.”

Reti also highlighted today the Government’s $604m boost to Pharmac over the next four years, which would assist with the purchase of 54 new drugs - including two bowel cancer drugs.

Pharmac announced this week that cancer drug Keytruda would be a funded treatment option for some patients from October 1.

It will also fund another medication, cetuximab, though a date has not yet been set for its availability.

Bowel cancer is the second most common cancer in New Zealand, with about 3300 people diagnosed a year and more than 1200 deaths annually.

Isaac Davison is an Auckland-based reporter who covers health issues. He joined the Herald in 2008 and has previously covered the environment, politics and social issues.