What kind of bowel cancer screening is available in Ireland, and what should people look for?

DECORATED IRISH ATHLETE Ciara Mageean died on Sunday after revealing she was diagnosed with bowel cancer in July 2025. 

The 34-year-old’s memoir was published in July this year, and speaking on RTÉ Radio 1 when it was released, Mageean said when she got her diagnosis she assumed it would be at an early stage because she was “so young and healthy”.

It was then discovered that Mageean had stage four cancer and that it had spread to her liver and lungs.

Bowel cancer is the second most common cancer in men and the third most common cancer in women in Ireland.

Currently, in Ireland the National Bowel Screening Programme offers people aged between 57 and 71 a free at-home bowel screening test every 2 years.

Those whose screening results come back as not normal are invited for a free colonoscopy within 4 to 6 weeks.

If you have a family history of bowel cancer, your GP can also refer you for screenings and colonoscopies. 

After Mageean’s death was announced on Sunday, there have been renewed calls for better access to and awareness of bowel screening. 

Co-chair at Bowel Cancer Ireland Brendan Dolan told The Journal they were “heartbroken” to hear about Mageean’s passing.

He said they have been “long campaigning” for the screening age to be “much lower”. 

The Department of Health previously announced plans to expand the screening age bracket by incremental one-year expansions.

Dolan said, though this progress is welcome, people like Mageean “would never be caught by a screening programme”, because she was only in her early 30s when she was diagnosed. 

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He said to catch people like Mageean’s cancer early, the answer lies in having “much more awareness” of what the symptoms are and when to get checked. 

The main symptoms people should look out for include any blood in your stool, changes to your toilet habits including needing to go more or less often than is normal for you, pain in your stomach, and unexplained weight loss and bloating. 

A big part of it also, according to Dolan, is to make sure you are insistent when you seek medical attention.

He said “particularly women” often go to their GP with some symptoms and are told “ah no, you’re fine”. Dolan said people should seek a second opinion when they have concerns because you know “what is normal for you”. 

Dolan believes there also needs to be sustained investment from the government in awareness campaigns. 

He said there is a knowledge gap around bowel cancer, more so than other cancers because people may find it “squeamish” to talk about. 

According to the National Cancer Registry Ireland, bowel cancer among under-50s has almost doubled over the past 25 years. One in ten bowel cancer diagnoses in Ireland now occurs in someone under 50.

There has also been a 75% increase in incidents of bowel cancer among people aged between 20 and 35.

Dolan said there is an awareness gap where people often assume bowel cancer only affects people in their 50s and beyond and that gap “needs to be filled”.

In the UK at-home screenings are offered to those aged between 50 and 74. Anyone aged 75 and older can call to request an at-home test.

The European Commission recommends screening between ages 50 and 69. Most EU countries have screening programmes that cover some or all of this age cohort. 

In many of her interviews before her death, Mageean urged people to get checked when they feel something is off.

“I want to raise awareness to listen to your body, but also to show people there’s no guarantees in life, somebody can be perfectly healthy and go out tomorrow and a catastrophe could happen.”