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- Acute Medicine
- Anaesthetics
- Audiology
- Behçet’s Syndrome National Centre of Excellence
- Bereavement Services
- Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre
- Blood tests
- Bowel Cancer Screening
- Breast Screening
- Breast Unit
- Cancer Services
- Cancer Support Services
- Cardiology
- Children’s Community Nursing
- Clinical Toxicology
- Colposcopy
- Community Wards
- Connected Palliative Care
- Critical Care
- Dermatology
- Diabetes
- Ear, nose and throat
- Elderly Care
- Emergency Department
- Female Genital Mutilation Service
- FINCH Service
- Gastroenterology
- General Surgery
- Gynaecological cancer
- Gynaecological Cancer – Genetic Testing
- Gynaecology
- Health Visiting
- Homeless Team
- Imaging
- Immunology and allergy
- Infection Control
- Integrated Care Services (iCares)
- Lung Health Checks
- Maternity
- Neonatal Unit
- Neurology
- Neurophysiology
- Nuclear Medicine
- Nutrition and Dietetics
- Occupational Health and Wellbeing
- Orthotics
- Paediatric Allergy Service
- Paediatrics
- Pain Management
- Parkinson’s Disease Service
- Pathology
- Pharmacy
- Plastic Surgery
- Poisons
- Post-Menopausal Bleeding Clinic
- Rehab Wards
- Research & Development (R&D)
- Respiratory
- Respiratory Physiology
- Rheumatology
- Sandwell Sexual Health Services
- Sickle Cell & Thalassaemia
- Speech and Language Therapy
- Stroke Care
- Transition and Young People
- Trauma and Orthopaedics
- Urogynaecology
- Urology
- Vascular Day Surgery
- Volunteer Service
Bowel Cancer Screening
We participate fully in a national screening programme. Tests are available every two years to all men and women aged 56 to 74, with national roll-out to invite people aged 50 and over expected to be complete by the end of 2024. People who are over 74 can request a home-screening kit over the phone by calling 0800 707 60 60.
People in this age group will automatically be sent an invitation through the post, then their screening “kit” so they can complete the test in the comfort of their own home. Your GP will provide your contact details and it is therefore very important that they are kept up to date with any changes.
The screening initiative aims to detect bowel cancer at an early stage in people with no symptoms, when treatment is likely to be more effective.
If you wish to have your colonoscopy pre assessment appointment by telephone you can request this by calling 0800 707 60 60.
The screening is initially via a home test via a FIT (Faecal Immunochemical Test) kit which looks for hidden blood in stools. This does not diagnose bowel cancer, but the results will give an indication as to whether the patient is in need of further examination, which is done by a colonoscopy. A colonoscopy is a procedure in which a doctor uses a colonoscope or scope, to look inside your rectum and colon.
Bowel cancer screening can also detect polyps, which are abnormal growths that aren’t cancerous but may become do over time. They can be removed during a colonoscopy potentially preventing patients going on to develop cancer.
A colonoscopy clinic is run twice a week at City Hospital, twice a week at Sandwell Hospital and once a week at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham.
Team
Clinical Lead – Screening Director
Prof Nigel Trudgill
Deputy Screening Director
Dr Jason Goh
Consultant Colonoscopists
Prof Nigel Trudgill
Dr Imtiyaz Mohammed
Dr Imran Ghanghro
Dr Ahsan Malik
Mr Misra Budhoo
Dr Jason Goh
Lead Specialist Screening Practitioner
Claire Beats
Specialist Screening Practitioners
Claire Beats
Richard Glennon
Angeline Johnson
Paula Harbutt
Anna Marie Twum-Barima
Liliana Castanheiro
Christopher Howes
Michelle Scott-Harris
Elizabeth Gee
Sharon Garner
Programme Manager
David Vernon
Programme Coordinator
Marion Butler
Administration Team Leader
Mayur Patel
Administrators
Elaine Noons
Riba Begum
Sarah Jones
Services
Bowel Cancer Screening
We participate fully in a national screening programme. Tests are available every two years to all men and women aged 60 to 74. People who are over 74 can request a home-screening kit over the phone by calling 0800 707 60 60.
The checks begin with a simple test that can be carried out at home using a kit that is sent to individual patients. If the test reveals anything unusual then further tests can be carried out in hospital by a consultant or specialist nurse.
City and Sandwell hospitals have a team of specialists who hold clinics for patients whose home tests have shown positive. Patients are assessed for their suitability for a colonoscopy – a tiny video camera on a thin flexible tube which is inserted into the back passage under local anaesthetic. This allows the consultant or specialist nurse to see directly if there are any abnormal growths.
A colonoscopy clinic is run once a week at City Hospital, twice a week at Sandwell Hospital and once a week at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham.
Bowel Cancer Screening Clinics
City Hospital
Pre-assessment clinics – Monday AM, Tuesday AM, and Friday AM
Colonoscopy lists – Monday AM and Tuesday AM
Sandwell Hospital
Pre-assessment clinics – Monday AM, Wednesday AM, and Thursday AM
Colonoscopy lists – Wednesday AM, Wednesday PM, and Thursday PM
Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Pre-assessment clinics – Wednesday AM, Thursday AM, and Friday PM
Colonoscopy lists – Tuesday AM, Tuesday PM, and alternate Saturdays AM and PM
Patient Stories

The Bowel Cancer Screening team with the inflatable walk-through bowel.
We have a walk through inflatable bowel! We regularly take the inflatable bowel out to our communities to educate them about the importance of bowel screening.
Poem about bowel cancer screening raises awareness of life-saving test
A patient is hoping to raise awareness of bowel cancer screening – by writing a light-hearted poem about her experience.
Lynne Conroy, 63, of Tipton, penned the poetry after she underwent a colonoscopy at Sandwell Hospital, in West Bromwich.
She had taken the “poo in the post” test and after the results showed up some irregularities, the mum-of-three was called in for a further examination.
During the procedure two polyps were removed and she was given the all clear by doctors. But she was so impressed with her treatment, Lynne, who works as an office manager for domicillary and support care company JLKare and Support, decided to write about it.
“I love writing poems,” she explained. “So when I was asked to give some feedback about the treatment and care at the hospital, I thought I would do it in poetry form.
“It’s a light-hearted way of raising awareness of a very important test, which can ultimately be life-saving.
“I think that even if this encourages just one person to take the ‘poo in the post’ test, then I have done something good. All the tests that I underwent were quick and painless and there was nothing awkward about it.”
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, people over the age of 60 are invited to take part in bowel cancer screening every two years.
The national screening programme uses a home test called a Faecal Occult Blood Test (FOBT), which looks for hidden blood in poo.
Lynne added: “Some of my friends have taken the postal test, so I was very aware of it when I received it in the post and I didn’t hesitate to do it. It’s a very straightforward and easy procedure that you just do at home.”
Clair Millard, Specialist Screening Practitioner for the Bowel Cancer Screening programme, said: “It’s the first time we have ever feedback in poetry form and we’re really impressed with how Lynne expressed herself.
“People can sometimes be reluctant to take the test but it can detect cancer at an early stage, which is when treatment has the best chance of working.
“We are grateful to Lynne for her poem and we intend to use it to promote our service further.”
My Colonoscopy
Do I need to mention the day before?
Drinking Klean Prep was such a chore!
To clean out my innards and make it clear,
for the camera to go – straight up my rear!
I chose to be awake so I could see it on telly,
In a foetal position on my side and belly.
Up went the camera – no chance to be shy.
“Just a couple of polyps,” thank God, I won’t die.
The crew were professional, the tube went in deep.
With gas and air on tap, I never made a peep.
There are no malignancies; all was fine.
Just two bits of diverticular in my intestine.
They made sure I was fine before I went home.
In the future they’ll do this procedure by Drone!
Dr Mohammad and his team all played their part,
So I’d like to thank them all from the bottom of my heart.
- Please feel free to share your experiences of this service. Please e-mail your views to swbh.comms@nhs.net
Patient Information
Patient information videos
Please click on the link below to watch a film about how to use a bowel cancer screening kit.
Foreign language versions of the video are available in Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Farsi, Gujarati, Polish, Punjabi, Portuguese and Urdu.
Patient information leaflets
Having a colonoscopy – ML7176
Having a Flexible Sigmoidoscopy ML6090
MOVIPREP Laxative instructions (morning appointment) – BCS Version (ML5793)
MOVIPREP Laxative instructions (afternoon appointment) – BCS Version (ML5794)
Advice following a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy without sedation ML5876
Enhanced Recovery After Colorectal Surgery ML6364
Contacts
City Hospital:
Telephone: 0121 507 6002
Sandwell Hospital:
Telephone: 0121 507 3185
Queen Elizabeth Hospital:
Telephone: 0121 371 6993.
National freephone helpline:
0800 707 60 60 (for kit requests or other queries)