More Kiwis between the ages of 60 and 74 have access to free regular bowel health checks as Auckland DHB joins the National Bowel Screening Programme (NBSP).
The inclusion means a further 65,000 people are eligible for the free checks.
Waitematā and Counties Manukau DHBs have already been providing the service.
Health Minister Andrew Little called the move a "great milestone".
“We’re now close to three quarters of the way to achieving our goal of nationwide coverage by the end of next year. That’s worth marking,” Little says.
“This programme is already saving hundreds of lives a year, it will save thousands more over years to come.
“Getting tested every two years means there’s a better chance of catching any problems quickly. If we catch and treat your bowel cancer early, you have a 90 per cent chance of long term survival.
“Bowel cancer is our second most common cancer, and a leading cause of death. Right now we have people turning up to emergency departments in pain or with other symptoms of advanced bowel cancer. That’s not right and we can help fix it, by taking a minute at home to take the test when we’re invited."
More about the National Bowel Screening Programme can be found here.
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