Summary

It is estimated that in 2025 about 6,941 people aged 50–74 were diagnosed with bowel cancer (around 47% of all bowel cancers diagnosed) and 1,779 people in this age group died from the disease (around 34% of all bowel cancer deaths).

The National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) began in 2006. It aims to reduce the morbidity and mortality from bowel cancer by actively recruiting and screening the target population, aged 45–74, for early detection or prevention of the disease. 

This report presents the latest data on eligible Australians aged 50-74 years against the NBCSP key performance indicators (AIHW 2014). While the latest data are to December 2025, the year for which each performance indicator are reported can vary to ensure that the most recent data are used for each indicator.

Currently, the NBCSP mails a free bowel screening kit to eligible Australians aged 50-74 years every two years. Since 1 July 2024, those aged 45–49 have also been eligible to participate in the NBCSP by requesting a kit from the National Cancer Screening Register. This newly eligible cohort are not included in the main NBCSP key performance indicators presented in the report, but initial data on their interaction with the program are included under Data at a glance.

How many people participated?

Of the 6.4 million people invited between January 2023 and December 2024, 42.0% participated in the program. The national participation rate was slightly higher than the previous rolling 2-year period (41.7% in 2022–2023). The re-participation rate for those who took part in their previous invitation round and received a subsequent screening invitation was 83.5% (83.0% in 2022–2023). For those who had ever previously participated, the re-participation rate was 73.4%.

Screening results in 2024

In 2024, 73,745 Australians returned a positive screening test, giving a 5.8% screening positivity rate. Of those who received a positive screening test, 85.4% reported a follow-up diagnostic assessment. The median time from positive screening test result to diagnostic assessment was 62 days.

Cancers and adenomas detected in 2024

Matched national cancer diagnosis data were not available for those who screened later than 2019. However, of the outcome data available from NBCSP assessment form return, for participants who had a diagnostic assessment in 2024, 1 in 29 were diagnosed with a confirmed or suspected cancer (195 and 470, respectively) and 1 in 3 were diagnosed with an adenoma (5,911 participants). Adenomas are benign growths with potential to become cancerous; their removal lowers the risk of future bowel cancers developing.

Variation across population groups

Participants who identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin, those who lived in Very remote areas, and those who lived in low socioeconomic areas, all had higher rates of positive screens (warranting further assessment), but lower rates of follow-up diagnostic assessment, and a longer median time between a positive screen and assessment.

Since the NBCSP began

Since the program began in August 2006, about 14.3 million NBCSP screening tests have been completed, with about 5.4 million people participating at least once. Due to the improvement in bowel cancer outcomes data in the previous report, it is now known that at least 17,378 bowel cancers have been diagnosed through screening in the NBCSP. 

The AIHW has previously conducted studies of people diagnosed with bowel cancer between 2006 and 2010. These studies showed that NBCSP invitees (particularly those who participated) who were diagnosed with bowel cancer had a lower risk of dying from the disease and were more likely to have less advanced bowel cancers when diagnosed. These findings show that the NBCSP is contributing to reducing morbidity and mortality from bowel cancer in Australia (AIHW 2018a, 2018b).

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