Health Awareness
In this issue
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How incontinence treatment options can improve lives of patients at any age
Various treatments are available for urinary incontinence. If you have symptoms, don’t put off seeing your GP because treatment could make a big difference to your quality of life. According to NHS England, approximately 14 million people in the UK have some degree of urinary incontinence — a condition linked with a reduced quality of...
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Why prostate cancer aftercare should not be an afterthought
Improved prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment have tripled survivor rates since the 1970s. However, treatments may affect sexual and urinary health, so aftercare options are crucial for quality of life. The two main choices to treat organ-confined prostate cancer are surgery and radiotherapy. Patients often select their treatment based on side effects and the treatment’s...
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Why boys need bins: how to ensure hygiene access in all toilets
A campaign is underway for equal access to hygiene and waste disposal in men’s toilets, especially for those with bladder and bowel incontinence conditions. As Chair of the Association for Continence Professionals (ACP), I am delighted that following a recent relaunch, with a new name and logo, we are proud to announce our new Patron...
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Only 30% of GPs know about Fowler’s syndrome: here’s what it is and how to recognise it
Fowler’s syndrome is a life-changing and currently almost untreatable bladder condition that causes partial or full urinary retention. It solely affects women and is stigmatised, under-researched and under-funded. When I stopped being able to pass urine, it took 18 months to get a diagnosis. I was in so much pain that I thought my life...
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Tips on visiting your GP if you’re worried about bowel cancer
If you’re worried about potential bowel cancer symptoms, making an appointment with your GP is an important first step towards finding out what might be wrong. Symptoms, such as bleeding from your bottom, blood in your poo, changes to your pooing habits or a pain or lump in your tummy, don’t always mean you have...
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Why it’s important to protect and support the bladder’s microbiome
The human bladder contains a ‘microbiome’ of friendly and beneficial bacteria that needs looking after, explains Debbie Cotton, Head of Clinical Innovation at Invivo Healthcare. What is ‘the microbiome’? It’s the community of bacteria that lives in our environment and on and in our bodies, influencing our health in positive and negative ways. Every part...
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Regenerative treatment may offer a cure for incontinence patients
The AMELIE project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 874807. Patients whose lives have been impaired by faecal incontinence are offered new hope with proposed technology that offers a cure, rather than management, of their condition. In her 20s, Joanne suffered a fourth-degree vaginal...
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Trust your gut and speak out about your ulcerative colitis symptoms
Louise Thompson was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC) six years ago. She talks about her journey and how to help others feel better and find the right support. Ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease, led Thompson to seek help with persistent diarrhoea with bleeding. She received a diagnosis of mild to moderate UC and...
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Spreading incontinence facts and its mental health impacts on World Continence Week 2024
World Continence Week raises awareness of incontinence, aiming to destigmatise it along with various stakeholders to spread real impact and facts. The World Federation of Incontinence and Pelvic Problems (WFIPP) ‘took over’ World Continence Week from the International Continence Society (ICS) around eight years ago. Both myself and WFIPP Treasurer, Tomasz Michalek, are members of...
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Smoothing the path to diagnosis: how to find out what’s up with your gut
Stomach pain, frequent diarrhoea and blood in your poo may be symptoms of a gastrointestinal condition. Paying attention to your bowel habits is vital, and so is seeking help if something isn’t right. The Crohn’s & Colitis UK symptom checker has been one of our charity’s biggest success stories. More than a quarter of a...
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Rising incontinence costs and the environmental crisis lurking in Europe’s waste
Incontinence is often described as a hidden disability, but it takes a real toll on patients’ quality of life and society as a whole. The burden of incontinence affects every aspect of patients’ lives. Incontinence ties patients to accessible facilities and leads to higher rates of anxiety and depression, often defining their quality of life....
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Why some teenagers still wet the bed — and what can be done about it
Teenagers who still wet the bed may have to deal with a lack of self-confidence and a negative impact on their social lives. Yet, this medical condition can be successfully treated. Bedwetting, or the accidental passing of urine during sleep, is extremely common in young children — although, by the age of five, the majority...
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Use your platform for good: speaking up about IBS and how to manage it
In my 20s, I was all about work and living my best life. I never really took in everything that was happening in my body. It took a long time for me to get help (for IBS). While I was going through irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms, I knew I wasn’t feeling myself but didn’t...
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Why we need to improve care for women with urinary tract infections
Dr Cat Anderson is a GP in North Staffordshire specialising in women’s health and UTIs (urinary tract infections). She outlines how traditional testing can miss UTIs and urges healthcare practitioners to listen closely to patients when they say they have a problem. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) can be common in women. Bacteria within our own...
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Pelvic floor injuries and other issues people need to seek help for
Injuries to the pelvic floor — often following childbirth — are seen as a ‘neglected health issue.’ With symptoms including urinary or bowel leakage, patients can be reluctant to seek help. Childbirth-related pelvic floor injuries are common: in the first year after birth, 1 in 3 women will experience urinary leakage; 1 in 10 will...
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Why people need to stop hesitating to talk about bladder cancer symptoms
Bladder cancer affects over 21,000 individuals every year and is the fifth most common cancer in the UK. Despite these high numbers, only 1% of cancer research funding is devoted to bladder cancer. Awareness remains crucial to empower individuals in their fight against bladder cancer. Lifting the taboo around bladder cancer symptoms In recent years,...
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Why people need to stop hiding bowel worries and get symptoms checked
Thousands of young adults in the UK may be dropping out of their studies, work and social lives because of bowel health problems. Despite the severity of their symptoms, young people keep delaying seeing a GP. Some put it off because they are too embarrassed or scared to speak about their toilet habits. Others are...
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How life-changing treatment for bowel incontinence ended my 25 years of suffering
Bowel incontinence, also known as faecal incontinence, is an inability to control one’s bowel movements. However, effective solutions now exist. According to Bladder & Bowel UK, approximately 14 million people in the UK suffer from a continence issue. Moreover, about 6.5 million have some form of bowel problem. Many studies focus on its prevalence in...
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Surgeon launches new health festival in Wales to help and guide all women
Although women’s health has never been more in the spotlight, increasing waiting lists, maternity services under pressure and difficulty accessing specialists mean that women often turn to Dr Google for help. However, this is often unreliable. The wealth of information available online can be confusing and doesn’t always direct women to the best treatments available....
