Positive FOBT Result - What Now?

What is a Faecal Occult Blood Test (FOBT)?

You’ve recently undergone a bowel cancer screening test (FOBT).

This may have been organised by your GP or another doctor, or maybe through a kit that was sent to you in the mail.

Stool (poo) samples were collected and sent to the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) for faecal occult blood testing (FOBT). This a specialised test that looks for blood in the stool sample, which can be an indicator of bowel cancer, or other issues in the bowel.

I have a positive result, what does this mean?

A positive result means that blood has been found in at least one of your stool samples.

A positive FOBT result is quite common, however if testing shows there was blood present in your stool sample this needs to be promptly investigated further to determine the underlying cause. Most of the time the traces of blood in your sample are too small to see with your eyes.

Blood in the stool can be caused by things such as polyps, haemorrhoids, anal fissure, burst blood vessels or bowel cancer.

A positive FOBT does not mean that you have bowel cancer, but it is essential that you have a colonoscopy within 30 days to investigate what is causing the bleeding.