Colorectal Cancer Screening Pilot Programme to start this Wednesday (with photos)
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Launched by the Department of Health (DH), the Programme will be conducted in phases, with people born from 1946 to 1948 as the first batch to join. Arrangements for other age groups will be announced in due course.
The DH today (September 26) released information on the primary care doctors (PCDs) and colonoscopy specialists (CSs) participating in the Programme, including their clinic names, telephone numbers, addresses and any co-payments charged on the thematic website www.colonscreen.gov.hk. Hong Kong residents born in the years 1946 to 1948 who have already enrolled in the electronic Health Record Sharing System and hold a valid Hong Kong identity card can make an appointment with an enrolled PCD to receive the screening service. There is no quota set for the Pilot Programme. The first batch of eligible persons can receive the service at any time during the three-year programme duration.
The screening workflow comprises two stages:
(1) Eligible persons should first make an appointment with an enrolled PCD. After enrolment in the Programme, participants will receive a government subsidy to undergo the Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT). Participants shall collect stool specimens according to the instructions given and return the specimen(s) within four days of commencement of specimen collection to any collection box set up by the DH. The test result will be available in two to three working days. A second consultation at the PCD's clinic is not needed unless the result of the FIT test is positive; and
(2) If the FIT result is positive, the participant will receive the second consultation at the PCD's clinic, when he or she will be referred to see an enrolled CS to receive the standard colonoscopy service package subsidised by the Government in order to find out the cause of occult bleeding in the stool.
The Government will heavily subsidise the cost of cancer screening for programme participants. For the PCD consultation (to prescribe the FIT test or to follow up a FIT positive result), the Government will provide a subsidy amount of $280 for each consultation at the enrolled PCD clinic. For the standard colonoscopy service package, the Government will subsidise $8,500 if polyps are removed, or $7,800 if there is no need for polyp removal. The government subsidy amounts will cover one pre-procedural consultation as well as one or more post-procedural consultation(s), depending on the need. The costs of laboratory testing will also be covered by the Government.
Currently, more than 260 PCDs based at around 340 clinics have successfully enrolled in the Programme, about 95 per cent of which will not charge any co-payment.
At the same time, over 90 CSs have joined the Programme to provide colonoscopy examination services at more than 120 locations. If no polyp needs to be removed, co-payment will not be charged in about 70 per cent of cases. If polyp removal is needed, co-payment will not be required in about 60 per cent of cases. Co-payments charged by individual CSs, if any, are capped at $1,000.
Following the launch of the Programme, enrolled PCDs and CSs will display the programme logo at the entrance to their clinics and, by means of a special poster displayed inside the clinics, show clearly the co-payments charged, if any.
Colorectal cancer is the most common cancer in Hong Kong. Most colorectal cancers develop from benign polyps over a period of 10 years or more. These polyps often shed tiny amounts of blood invisible to the naked eye, but it can be picked up by screening tests for timely follow-up. Cure rates of colorectal cancer can be significantly improved by early detection and prompt treatment.
For more information about the Programme, please browse the thematic website at www.colonscreen.gov.hk or call the Programme's hotline 3565 6288 during office hours.
Ends/Monday, September 26, 2016
Issued at HKT 10:37
Issued at HKT 10:37
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