But after experiencing bowel cancer symptoms and a suggestion from his GP to use the kit, testing positive, undergoing what became a complex surgery to remove cancerous cells and living with a colostomy bag for six months, the initial test, Mr Keating reflects, was the easiest part.

"I had been receiving the kit for a few years but not doing anything with it. In a way, it's kind of like an in your face reminder that you're getting older and it's not an easy thing to talk about. You look at the kit and read how you're supposed to use it and it's confronting," the Corlette resident, aged 60, said.

"Having then gone through the ordeal of changing colostomy bags every few hours, the test is nothing at all."

The kit is sent out to Australians aged 50 to 74 every two years as part of the Australian Government's push to increase early detection rates.

While bowel cancer is Australia's second biggest cancer killer, if detected early it can be successfully treated in more than 90 per cent of cases. Despite this, currently only around 40 per cent of eligible people in NSW take part in the screening program.

As part of National Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, running throughout June, the Australian Government has announced that it will spend $9.7 million on a new awareness campaign for the screening program.

The campaign will aim to increase the numbers of men aged 50 to 59 years, people living in regional and remote communities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse communities to use the home testing kits.

"The campaign will target several groups that have relatively low screening rates when compared to the general population," a Department of Health spokesperson said.

"Based on research, the campaign aims to increase the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program participation rate by at least four percentage points during the duration of the campaign. Over time, campaigns such as these help grow the participation rate, as we know the [program] retains at least 80 per cent of first time screeners."

Mr Keating was in the age bracket of men the government is now targeting as part of its campaign when he was diagnosed with bowel cancer in early 2019.

For the Port Stephens photographer, his symptoms began with almost crippling exhaustion and blood in the loo.

"It's one of those things that when you notice a symptom, like blood in the toilet, it's embarrassing to talk about. You kind of ignore it and hope it goes away," Mr Keating said. "I got to the point where I was at total exhaustion. I could barely move because I was so fatigued that I knew I had to do something."

After a visit to his GP, Mr Keating underwent a blood test that revealed his iron was low. He began a course of iron injections, which had little effect.

Due being within the risk group age for bowel cancer, symptoms and the fact the iron injections weren't combating the exhaustion, Mr Keating's GP suggested he use a home testing kit.

One arrived in the mail the next day.

Days after sending his kit off for testing, his results came back as positive.

Within a week, Mr Keating was booked in for a colonoscopy at Belmont Hospital which revealed a carcinogenic polyp on his bowel.

"After the colonoscopy, I was told that they had found something and it had been sent off for testing," he said. "I was told I had a .17 per cent chance - less than one per cent - of it being cancer. Days later the hospital rang asking me to come in, that the surgeon wanted to talk about my test results."

Mr Keating underwent surgery in September 2019 to remove the polyp. What was meant to be a two-hour routine removal became a seven-hour touch-and-go ordeal. Mr Keating's bowel died while he was on the table and the surgeon was forced to use the blood in his large intestine to revive it. The large intestine was completely removed.

Learning that his bowel had died was particularly tough for Mr Keating. His mother, Shirley Keating, had died one month before from the exact same reason. It is not known why Ms Keating's bowel died, or why it happened to Mr Keating.

After his surgery, Mr Keating lived with a colostomy bag for six months. He did not have to undertake radiation or chemotherapy. He has a clean bill of health but must undergo a colonoscopy every 12 months for the next few years to ensure no cancer returns.

He has shared his experience on his Facebook page, which received an overwhelming response to, in a bid to encourage more people to use the testing kits.

Mr Keating said using the kit streamlined the process of his care, from returning a quick result, further testing almost immediately and surgery, which was not the experience of Raymond Terrace resident Candice Gleeson, aged 37, when she was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer in February.

Miss Gleeson told the Examiner that due to her age, she found it difficult to be taken seriously by her GP when she noticed something was wrong with her health and presented with bowel cancer symptoms. She had to push for further testing.

The Raymond Terrace resident is part of the growing demographic of younger Australians being increasingly diagnosed with bowel cancer.

Bowel Cancer Australia has found that in the past 30 years, the disease has increased by 186 per cent in people aged 15-24.

Bowel cancer has become the most common cause of cancer-related death in Australians aged 25-29.

When the Examiner asked the Department of Health whether the screening program age should be lowered and home kits be made available to younger Australians, the spokesperson said: "While the program acknowledges bowel cancer can present itself in younger age groups, data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, published in the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program: Monitoring Report 2020, notes the incidence rate of bowel cancer is known to increase with age".

"In addition to the free National Bowel Cancer Screening Program for persons aged 50-74, the Australian Government also provides Medicare Benefits Schedule items for bowel screening kits issued by GPs," the spokesperson added.

"These government funded kits are available at the discretion of GPs and to persons of any age. Where a person has concerns about bowel cancer, or has a family history of bowel cancer, we encourage people speak to their GP who is best placed to advise on individual circumstances."

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