Mother-of-three Emily Tindal thought she was having a bad asthma attack when she went to Canberra Hospital's emergency department last month.
The 35-year-old had been having trouble breathing since giving birth to her daughter Eleni three months ago.
Thinking it was adult-onset asthma, her GP prescribed her Ventolin and steroids, but the medication was not doing its job.
READ MORE: Mother pleads for young Aussies to know bowel cancer symptoms
On this day, her breathing was even more laboured, and her GP told her to get to the hospital.
There, puzzled doctors began a barrage of tests.
"I had about a million blood tests," Mrs Tindal said.
"The doctors thought I had an autoimmune disease and that it would be a very simple fix, it was just a matter of working out which autoimmune disease I had because there's so many."
Mrs Tindal spent two weeks in the respiratory ward at Canberra Hospital as doctors ordered CT scans and MRIs, trying to piece together what was wrong.
It was on one of those scans that doctors detected something on her liver.
The news, when it came, was devastating.
Mrs Tindal was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer, with doctors telling her she likely has just 12 months to live.
"It was such a shock, I had no real symptoms," Mrs Tindal said.
"There were no bowel problems. I literally had a cough and was short of breath.
"I was a bit tired too, but with the baby being born that was normal and to be expected."
Mrs Tindal said her grandfather had died of bowel cancer, but it had never been suggested to her that she might need to be screened for it herself.
Bowel cancer claims the lives of 5255 Australians every year, including 290 people under the age of 50.
Under the national bowel cancer screening program, free test kits are sent out in the mail to people aged between 50 and 74 years.
Statistics released last week by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show the effectiveness of the screening process.
In 2019, the screening test kits led to a confirmed cancer diagnosis in 200 patients and suspected cancer in 1170 more.
Adenomas, benign growths with the potential to become cancerous, were identified in a further 5160 cases.
Mrs Tindal said she wished the screening test had been offered to her and she hoped the Federal Government would consider expanding the program to include younger people.
"There's definitely a need to make this available to younger people," she said.
"It should be like a pap smear. I just can't believe that if I had sent in one of these tests, I wouldn't be in this sort of situation."
Deadliest cancer for young adults
Dr Graham Newstead is the director of Bowel Cancer Australia and the joint Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of New South Wales.
Dr Newstead said one in ten new cases of bowel cancer in Australia were now occurring in people under the age of 50 and it was the deadliest cancer among those aged 25-34.
Based on those figures, Dr Newstead said there was an extremely strong case for the Federal Government to lower the age of those included in the screening program.
Last month, a national taskforce in the US recommended reducing the screening age for bowel cancer from 50 to 45.
Bowel Cancer Australia has been campaigning for the government to screen from 45 since 2018.
However, Dr Newstead said he had made a "passionate plea" to Health Minister Greg Hunt just two weeks ago for screening to begin at 40.
"We will be pushing very strongly that the bowel cancer screening test kit be commenced at 40 and in fact go to at least 80," he said.
"I spoke to Mr Hunt and his adviser during Bowel Cancer Awareness month, and they have asked us to provide a submission to the government to look at this as a major imperative."
A Health Department spokesperson said the age range for the screening program was chosen based on evidence from international bowel screening programs and follows guidelines approved by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
"While we do not actively invite Australians under 50 years of age to do the free home test kit, people who are not eligible can get a Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) funded bowel screening kit," the spokesperson said.
"This MBS kit is available from GPs and can be provided to people of any age."
Cases increasing in young people
Bowel cancer is on the rise in young people, both in Australia and overseas.
According to Bowel Cancer Australia, there has been a 186 per cent increase in bowel cancer cases in people aged 15-24 over the past three decades.
US studies have shown people born after 1990 have double the risk of colon cancer and quadruple the risk of rectal cancer, compared with people born in 1950.
While it was yet to be proven, Dr Newstead said changing diets were one of the most likely reasons people were being diagnosed with bowel cancer at younger ages.
"Over the last 30 or 40 years we have been eating different foods," he said.
"We no longer grow carrots in the back garden, bring them in, cook them and eat them. We buy our foods packaged in plastic wrapping with more additives and preservatives."
Dr Newstead said there was no doubt it also took longer for younger people to be diagnosed with bowel cancer.
Being aware of the symptoms of bowel cancer - such as blood in stools or a change in bowel habits - was key for patients, as was an alertness to them in doctors, he said.
Mrs Tindal said she hoped sharing her story would help increase awareness about the disease among young people.
Meanwhile, Mrs Tindal said she was determined to throw everything she could at her cancer battle.
"We are fighters, and I'm going to give it a good crack," she said.
Mrs Tindal is undergoing chemotherapy and has already had emergency surgery to remove four metres of her bowel after a blockage was found.
She said the main lesson she had learned over the last few months was how lucky she was.
"Every day is just so precious," she said.
"You walk out the door one day thinking you're just going to the doctors and life changes as you know it.
"I'm so grateful for what I have had, and still have, because certainly I am going to fight this."
Contact reporter Emily McPherson at emcpherson@nine.com.au.
