We ‘bag it and bin it’ in the street while clearing up after our dogs, we spread it on our gardens and fields to increase their yield, some people even swim in it in our polluted rivers and then complain about it and demonstrate it on television – so why are we embarrassed to collect a sample and hand it in to our GP surgery or send it for screening? With a little knowledge we come to realise that it is fascinating stuff holding much information, some of which could be lifesaving. 

An example of this is tiny amounts of blood invisible to the eye but able to be shown up with a chemical analysis.  This may indicate such conditions as small bleeding haemorrhoids, inflammation or ulcers of the bowel, or polyps. Of these, polyps can sometimes be the most serious as they can be premalignant (going on in time to become cancer) or they may have already started to undergo that early change. Polyps once found can be painlessly removed before they progress further so preventing a potentially fatal illness.

As a doctor who has previously been a fellow patient and had this procedure carried out I am extremely grateful to my medical colleagues for all that they may have saved me from. So, if for any reason you are requested to give a poo sample I know that complying with this simple request could save you many months of suffering and be a life saving action.