Is it piles or something more sinister? Doctors reveal thousands are dying of bowel cancer by ignoring tell-tale signs

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They both have painful symptoms most people would prefer not to talk about, but the difference between having piles or bowel cancer really could be a matter of life and death.

More than half of the population will suffer from piles, also known as haemorrhoids, at some stage in their lifetime. 

Yet doctors are concerned that too often people dismiss rectal bleeding or blood in the stools as just a symptom of piles, without getting it investigated. 

The worry is that the bleeding could actually be a sign of something more sinister - bowel cancer.

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Beating Bowel Cancer charity and online clinic Health Express have teamed up to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer, which can often be mistaken for piles

About half of people will experience haemorrhoids, otherwise known as piles, in their lifetime. However, if symptoms of bowel cancer, are mistaken for piles it can have devastating consequences

Bowel or colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer in the world, with nearly 1.4 million new cases diagnosed in 2012 - the most recent figures to date. 

MailOnline marked the start of bowel cancer awareness month with a 'stool chart' designed as an easy guide to check for possible symptoms.

Bowel cancer is very treatable but those diagnosed at an early stage have a much higher chance of successful treatment than those whose cancer has become more widespread.

It shows healthy examples of stools and advises people to check for changes, especially those that last for more than three weeks. 

A magnified look at human colon cancer cells 

Now online clinic, Health Express, has teamed up with the charity Beating Bowel Cancer in a bid to save lives. 

They have created a series of infographics comparing the symptoms, risk factors associated with each, preventative measures and treatment options of the two conditions. 

The diagrams have been designed by experts to show the similarities and differences of both and what is likely to happen when you go to the doctor's.

For example, they explain how the symptoms of haemorrhoids - which causes swollen blood vessels around the back passage, triggering pain and bleeding - can clear up in a few days.

They recommend making simple dietary changes and not straining on the toilet as the first call for treating piles, in addition to over-the-counter medications which can soothe symptoms.

Around one in ten cases of piles need to be removed through surgery if other methods such as banding – placing a very tight elastic band around the base of your haemorrhoids to cut off their blood supply – doesn't work.

However, while unpleasant, the condition does not carry the same risk to health as bowel cancer. 

Bowel cancer is most likely to strike in people who have a diet high in red meat and those who are obese. However, pregnant women can be more at risk of piles, as well as those who regularly lift heavy objects

Anyone who suspects they have piles or bowel cancer should go to see their GP who will check for signs of both disease

The disease affects slightly more men than women and chances of getting it increase with age However, if it is found early, 90 per cent of bowel cancer cases can be treated successfully - which is why it is vital to get it checked out.

Dr Hilary Jones, who works as an independent medical advisor for Health Express, said he hoped the awareness drive would help to save lives.

'Campaigns such as Bowel Cancer Awareness Month are great in helping to raise awareness on the the UK's second biggest cancer killer, where someone is diagnosed every 15 minutes. 

'It is important to be vigilant when spotting the signs of bowel cancer. With early detection, meaning a 90 per cent chance of survival, bowel cancer is treatable. 

'It is therefore important to know what to look out for, for the highest chance of successful treatment.' 

PEOPLE ARE DYING OF EMBARRASSMENT: WHY WE NEED TO STOP BEING SQUEAMISH ABOUT BOWEL CANCER SCREENING 

By Helen Coleman, Lecturer in Cancer Epidemiology, Queen's University Belfast, for The Conversation

Not all cancers are equal – especially when it comes to awareness. 

It always surprises me how reluctant we are as humans to talk about our bowels. Why can we talk freely about some body parts and habits but not others?

Bowel cancer ranks as the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer in the UK, but it jumps up to the second or third leading cause of cancer death depending on where you live in the UK and whether you consider other cancers that affect only males or females. 

And yet bowel cancer is one of the few cancers that has a pre-cancerous growth, known as a polyp or adenoma, that can be detected and removed. 

So we have a clear opportunity to reduce our chances of both developing bowel cancer and dying from it.

Bowel cancer is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer in the UK. Survival rates increase significantly if it's caught early

The introduction of the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening programme in the past decade in other parts of the UK, and more recently in Northern Ireland, has been a welcome addition to our efforts to prevent deaths from bowel cancer. 

But our reluctance to discuss our bowels undoubtedly has a knock-on effect, making many less willing to do the test.

In Northern Ireland, men and women aged 60-74 (age ranges vary slightly in other parts of the UK) are sent packs every two years so they can complete the test at home. 

These involve collecting and handling small samples of faeces passed on three separate occasions, and posting these off to a laboratory where they are tested for occult (hidden traces of blood). 

Yet fewer than half of all adults who are sent these packs actually take them and send them back. This compares with uptake rates of 70-80 per cent for both breast screening and cervical screening. 

And the poorer uptake isn't a simple reflection of it being the only cancer screening test available for both men and women – although women are slightly more likely to take the test than men.

The evidence on bowel cancer screening is clear: people who take part in bowel cancer screening get diagnosed earlier and are 16 per cent less likely to die from bowel cancer than those who do not.

So why are we less likely to screen our bowels than other body parts? 

Research undertaken to understand the reasons behind this low uptake revealed many common factors for other cancers for which screening programmes exist, such as fear of cancer and the getting the results from the test. 

However, other bowel-specific reasons such as test procedures and disgust over handling faeces were raised. 

These trends have also been reported in other parts of the UK. 

How can we overcome such cultural beliefs and norms? Most people have changed nappies, or 'scooped poop' when walking their dogs, at some stage of their lives. 

Apparently, it's handling our own faeces that is the issue.

WHAT'S INVOLVED IN THE BOWELSCOPE? 

If people do take the bowel screening test, and their samples reveal a positive faecal occult blood result, they will then be invited to attend a colonoscopy, which is the main method for detecting bowel polyps and cancer. 

Is the possibility of undergoing this invasive procedure also putting people off having the test? 

Perhaps, but cervical smear tests are equally invasive and we still see better uptake rates for cervical screening.

In England, 55-year-old men and women are soon to be offered a 'bowelscope' – a type of colonoscopy called a flexible sigmoidoscopy that allows investigation of the left-side of the bowel. 

Research shows fear of cancer and apprehension of getting the results are key reasons for ignoring signs

Is your poo trying to tell you something? Examples of healthy stools are shown left, with possible changes in bowel habits, middle, and cases where you should consult a doctor immediately, shown right

They will also then be invited to take part in bowel cancer screening tests from age 60 as per the rest of the country.

Flexible sigmoidoscopy screening tests have been shown to lead to better detection rates of adenoma and cancer than faecal occult blood tests, and it is estimated that bowelscope will prevent an extra 10,000 bowel cancer cases and 2,000 bowel cancer deaths by 2030, even if uptake rates remain at only 50 per cent. 

However, bowelscope isn't available in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. So, when it comes to cancer awareness, not all cancers are equal. And when it comes to cancer screening, not all services are equal. 

Still, introduction of bowelscope in England should at least increase awareness of bowel cancer throughout the UK.

Efforts to lobby and increase awareness of digestive tract cancers, particularly bowel cancer, still lag well behind other cancer types. We don't have an equivalent celebrity figure raising awareness of bowel cancer, as seen for some other cancer types. 

Although some campaigns such as 'Lift the lid' and 'Be cancer aware' are helping to change this for bowel cancer, we need to be more willing to discuss our bowels. 

At present, people are still literally dying from embarrassment.