The number of people aged under-50 admitted to private hospital with bowel cancer has jumped by almost 50% since 2021, according to the Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN).
In the third quarter of 2025 there were 925 people under the age of 50 who received private treatment for the condition, up from 620 in the final quarter of 2021.
During the same period, the over-50s in private hospitals for the condition remained relatively stable at around 2,000 admissions per quarter.
Overall the PHIN research showed a 7% rise in private admissions for the condition across all age groups during this four-year period.
Since 2021, the private sector has managed or treated 46,000 people for bowel cancer, the fourth most common cancer in the UK.
Private lower gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures, which diagnose and treat bowel cancer, increased by more than a fifth (22%) during the same period. However, not all of these procedures were cancer related.
Lowering the threshold
Dr Christopher Smith-Brown, a clinical adviser at PHIN, said the rise in admissions for the under-50s could be the result of campaigning to raise awareness of the symptoms and risks of bowel cancer.
A change in NHS policy, high waiting lists and increased access to private services could also be factors.
“The NHS is committed to early diagnosis and is lowering the threshold of a routine home screening test for the over-50s,“ he said.
“That should trigger further investigations, such as endoscopy or colonoscopy, and the NHS expects to diagnose 11% more bowel cancer and many other conditions that may lead to it.
“In both age groups, changes to screening thresholds are expected to lead to a higher demand for diagnostic testing, with NHS projections indicating around 35% more endo‑colonoscopies will be needed.
“More demand for screening and treatment means more pressure on an already strained NHS capacity. Patients might turn to private providers in even greater numbers for earlier diagnosis and the consequent better outcomes.
“The private sector is helping already,” he added. “With an increase in lower GI endo/colonoscopies of 8% for the over-50s and a 48% increase for the under-50s since Q4 2021, there has clearly been an upwards trend and are expecting even more demand once the new lower threshold for screening comes in.
“There have been more lower GI procedures for the under-50s in the private sector than the over-50s since Q2 2023.”
