The Story Why are more young people getting bowel cancer?
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Feb 18, 2026 Trevor Graham, director studying historic tumour archives and the microbiome, and Ben Spencer, science editor who unpacks research and stats. They explore rising bowel cancer in under-50s. They discuss possible causes like lifestyle shifts, the microbiome and a toxin-producing E. coli, early-life factors shaping gut bacteria, and using century-old tissue archives to trace changing risks.
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Young Patient's Shock Diagnosis
- Holly Masters was misdiagnosed at 22 and later found to have stage 3 bowel cancer after a trip to A&E.
- She underwent radiotherapy and chemotherapy and is now in remission, highlighting young-onset impact.
Rising Rates In Under-50s
- Bowel cancer remains mostly a disease of older people but cases under 50 have risen ~50% since the 1990s.
- This divergence makes bowel cancer unique and suggests a genuine change rather than just better detection.
Birth Cohort Risk Escalation
- Birth cohort analysis shows large increases: those born in 1995 have much higher early-life risk than 1960 cohorts.
- The WHO found the risk before age 50 rose about eightfold between those birth years.