The chances of surviving colon cancer have improved since screenings were introduced for people aged 55 to 75 were introduced a decade ago, according to figures published by research centre IKNL.

Seven in 10 people who were diagnosed with colon cancer in 2017 were still alive five years later, compared to six in 10 who received a diagnosis in 2010. Around 9,000 people a year in the Netherlands are found to have colon cancer, down from a peak of 11,000 in 2015.

Before large-scale testing began around 20% of tumours found were at stage I, when the disease is still treatable. That proportion now stands at 30%.

The proportion of stage IV tumours, when the cancer has spread and is no longer operable, has fallen in the same period from 25% to 15%.

The number of tumours detected has also fallen since 2016 as more polyps have been removed before becoming cancerous. Rectal cancer cases have also fallen from 4,750 to just over 3,000 since 2014.