Nearly 900,000 people aged between 62 and 75 will be called up for a bowel cancer test in January, the public health institute RIVM said on Thursday.

People will be asked to send a small sample of their faeces for testing. If traces of blood are found, they will be invited for further tests. The early testing will eventually prevent 2,400 deaths a year, the RIVM estimates

Some 13,000 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year and some 5,000 die of the disease.

The tests are being phased in and will eventually cover everyone aged 55 to 75. In total four million people will be included in the tests, which will be taken every two years.