The Saskatchewan Cancer Agency (SCA) is promoting the importance of colorectal cancer screening with the Cover your butt awareness campaign. The cheeky play on words is a call to action for residents aged 50 to 74 to complete the FIT (fecal immunochemical test) kit every two years. It could save your life.

The Cancer Agency’s Screening Program for Colorectal Cancer (SPCRC) mails FIT kits to eligible Saskatchewan residents between the ages of 50 and 74. The FIT is a quick and easy test that can be done in the comfort and privacy of your own bathroom.  

Colorectal cancer is the second most diagnosed form of cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in Saskatchewan. 

Since these types of cancer often develop slowly with few, if any, early warning symptoms, Dr. Hendrik du Plessis, General Surgeon and Medical Advisor to the SPCRC, says regular screening is the best way to prevent or detect colorectal cancer before it’s too late. 

“Approximately 90 per cent of colorectal cancers can be prevented or successfully treated if caught early,” says Dr. du Plessis. 

From 2015 to 2020, the number of new colorectal cancer diagnoses has steadily declined in the 50 to 74 age group in Saskatchewan. 

“Our screening program is making a difference,” says Dr. du Plessis. “As we continue to raise awareness about the benefits of the FIT kit and convince more people to complete the test, the more lives we can save.”

Saskatchewan has one of the highest colorectal screening participation rates in Canada at 44 per cent, but there’s still room for improvement. The SCA hopes their multifaceted public awareness campaign helps to further increase participation.

Learn more at SaskCancer.ca. You can also like and share the SCA’s social media posts about colorectal cancer to help spread the word and, ultimately, save lives; links can be found on the SCA website's home page.