A woman who has tragically lost 15 family members and friends to cancer has shared her own shock diagnosis, urging the public not to ignore vital NHS screening invitations.
A family history of loss and a shocking discovery
Jo Day, 50, from Bromsgrove, will never forget a poignant conversation with her father, Ron Larvin. He thanked her for reaching her 49th birthday, as his own sister had died from cancer at just 48. Unbeknownst to them both, Jo already had bowel cancer at the time of that emotional talk.
"It's so sad but I was lucky because I had symptoms and it was caught early," Jo explained. "But even knowing what I did about my family, I didn’t like the idea of bowel screening. Now I tell everyone not to ignore their screening invitation because it’s better to be safe than sorry."
From assumed piles to a life-saving colonoscopy
Jo initially believed the blood she noticed in her stool over two months was caused by piles. After reporting it to her doctor, she was seen within a week and given a colonoscopy in November last year. During the procedure, a polyp was discovered and removed.
"Lots of people have those, so I still didn’t think it was anything serious," Jo said. "I thought I’d have it removed and that would be it." However, subsequent test results delivered a devastating blow: the polyp was cancerous. Jo was diagnosed with early-stage bowel cancer.
"It was such a shock, but I felt really lucky that they’d caught it before it had spread any further," she added. Breaking the news to her parents, both cancer survivors themselves, was one of the hardest things she has ever done.
A powerful call to check your screening eligibility
With a stark family history that includes blood, lung, bowel, ovarian, prostate and breast cancers, Jo is now a passionate advocate for early detection. She is supporting a new online screening checker launched by the Stand Up To Cancer campaign, a joint initiative from Cancer Research UK and Channel 4.
The tool, fronted by famous faces including Davina McCall and Hugh Bonneville, has been launched amid estimates that 9 million people in the UK are not up to date with their cancer screening. It allows people to quickly check which NHS cancer screenings they are eligible for and access advice.
"Screening can detect cancer early, when treatment is more likely to be successful, and in some cases prevent the disease from developing altogether," Jo emphasised.
The campaign will culminate in a live TV special on Channel 4 on Friday, December 12, presented by Davina McCall and Adam Hills. Jo concluded: "I have a friend with three young children who survived cervical cancer because it was found early through screening so I hope people will take a few minutes to look at the screening checker."
The online screening checker can be found at www.standuptocancer.org.uk/screening-checker.
