In round three of the pilot, which took place across Tayside, Grampian and Fife NHS Boards, uptake was maintained at 55 per cent.

But, despite men having a higher risk of developing bowel cancer than women, only 51 per cent of men targeted took part in the screening programme compared to 60 per cent of women.

The director of the Bowel Screening Programme in Tayside, Professor Bob Steele, said "Uptake has been lower for men than women so we particularly want to persuade men to take part in the national programme, which has now been rolled out in Tayside.

"It is also our priority to reach people in the most deprived groups as uptake was 20 per cent lower than in the more affluent groups.

"Early bowel cancer is one of the most curable of all cancers and the screening programme aims to save lives by picking up the disease in its early stages.

"Most of the cancers which were picked up through the pilot screening programme were at an early stage and the majority of patients will have been cured.

"The age range has now been extended so that everyone in Tayside aged 50-74 will receive the simple test kit through the post, which they complete at home and return to the central laboratory at Kings Cross Hospital in Dundee. The test is really easy to do, full instructions are included and a free telephone helpline is available for anyone who needs extra help.

"The key message is that single tests don't pick up all cancers. So, even if people took part during the pilot, the test needs to be repeated every two years to ensure early detection and treatment. We want to encourage everyone who gets sent a kit to take part in this excellent national programme which is based here in Tayside."

The work being led by a wide range of NHS Tayside staff in the pilot has laid the foundations for the roll out of this programme across Scotland with the Scottish Bowel Screening Programme now acknowledged as one of the leading bowel screening programmes in the world.