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Objective: Uptake of screening through the Australian National Bowel Cancer Screening Program remains low. General practice guidelines support the general practitioners' role to offer CRC screening. This study tests the effect that an intervention including point-of-care FOBT provision, printed screening advice and GP endorsement has on self-reported FOBT uptake., Methods: A multisite, 1:1 parallel-arm, cluster-randomised controlled trial. Participants aged 50-74, at average risk of CRC and overdue for screening were recruited from four general practices in New South Wales, Australia, from September 2016 to May 2017. Self-report of FOBT up to eight weeks post baseline., Results: A total of 336 participants consented to complete a baseline survey (64% consent rate), of which 123 were recruited into the trial (28 usual care days and 26 intervention days). Follow-up data was collected for 114 participants (65 usual care and 49 intervention). Those receiving the intervention had ten times greater odds of completing screening compared to usual care (39% vs. 6%; OR 10.24; 95%CI 2.9-36.6, p=0.0006)., Conclusions: A multicomponent intervention delivered in general practice significantly increased self-reported FOBT uptake in those at average risk of CRC. Implications for public health: General practice interventions could serve as an important adjunct to the Australian National Bowel Cancer Screening Program to boost plateauing screening rates., (© 2019 The Authors.)

Objective: To examine among people attending outpatient clinics aged 50-74 at average risk of colorectal cancer (CRC): 1) The proportion who report: a) faecal occult blood test (FOBT) within the past two years; and b) colonoscopy within the past five years, including the reasons for undergoing colonoscopy; 2) characteristics associated with under-screening; 3) For those who are under-screened, the proportion who are: a) willing to receive help and the acceptability of different methods of receiving help, and; b) unwilling to receive help and reasons for this., Methods: Cross-sectional survey of 197 participants attending a major regional hospital in New South Wales, Australia. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine correlates of under-screening., Results: A total of 59% reported either FOBT in the past two years or colonoscopy in the past five years. Of those reporting colonoscopy in the past five years, 21% were potentially over-screened. Males were more likely than females to be under-screened. Of those under-screened (41%), fewer than half were willing to receive screening advice. Conclusions and implications for public health: A significant proportion of people attending outpatient clinics are under-screened for CRC, with some people also over-screened. There is a need to explore strategies to overcome both under- and over-screening., (© 2018 The Authors.)