28 March 2025
"If I hadn’t come down with flu-like symptoms in the autumn of 2016, I might not be here today." Robert Henkinet shares how a twist of fate led to the timely diagnosis of his bowel cancer – a stroke of luck. But his message is clear: "We can’t rely on luck. We need to do much more to promote screening."
In the autumn of 2016, Robert, then 52, visited his general practitioner, thinking he had the flu. While waiting, he noticed a poster encouraging people over 50 to take a stool test for early colorectal cancer detection.
At the end of his consultation, he asked his GP about it. Was it a good idea for him to get tested? The timing couldn’t have been better – his doctor had just received a new batch of self-tests and handed him one to take home.
False positive?
For months, the test sat untouched on Robert’s desk. As the expiration date loomed, he found himself at a crossroads. “At a certain point, I asked myself: do I take the test or just throw it away? It could have gone either way.”
In the end, he decided to take it – and the result came back positive. Still, Robert wasn’t overly alarmed. His doctor reassured him that false positives were common. “But as a precaution, you should have a colonoscopy,” the doctor advised.
At the time, Robert had just started a demanding new job with greater responsibilities and was working at full speed. Scheduling an appointment kept slipping down his priority list – not to mention, the preparation for a colonoscopy wasn’t exactly appealing.
But after the procedure, everything changed.
“When I woke up, I could tell from my gastroenterologist’s face that something was wrong,” he recalls. “They had found an adenocarcinoma over five centimeters long in the upper part of my colon. A serious and urgent operation was needed, and I had to undergo further tests immediately to check for metastases.”
‘When I woke up, I could tell from my gastroenterologist’s face that something was wrong.’
The additional tests revealed no metastases, but Robert still had to wait for surgery to determine the severity of the tumor. The operation was scheduled quickly. It was a complex procedure—surgeons removed 60 centimeters of his large intestine along with all the surrounding lymph nodes – but it went well.
Ten endless days
“After that, I had to wait ten days for the biopsy results,” Robert recalls. “That was an incredibly stressful time. If it was grade 0 or 1 – relatively harmless – I could focus on post-operative recovery and getting back to my ‘old’ life. But if it was grade 3, I would need chemotherapy, and life as I knew it would be completely different.”
His heart skipped a beat every time his phone rang in those ten days.
Then, finally, the news he had been hoping for: it was grade 1. Robert could continue his rehabilitation. While regular monitoring was still necessary, his life wouldn’t be completely turned upside down. Still, the experience profoundly changed his perspective. He learned to reassess priorities and see things in a new light. “Since then, I’ve looked at life and the future in a completely different way.”
By sharing his story, Robert hopes to encourage others to get screened in time. “Every test can save a life.”
In Belgium, we have a national screening program for colorectal cancer for people aged 50 to 74. Anyone in this age group can get tested free of charge. Want to learn more? Talk to your doctor or find information about the program in your region: Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels.
Working in healthcare, Robert Henkinet was well aware of the importance of screening and early detection. “I knew that colorectal cancer has a high survival rate when caught early. And yet, I first ignored the stool test, and later, I delayed the colonoscopy. Why? Because you think this only ever happens to other people.”
He was fortunate – but things could have turned out very differently. “I realize how lucky I was. Without those flu-like symptoms, I might have gone another six to twelve months without noticing anything, his gastroenterologist told him. By then, the carcinoma could have grown deeper, possibly with metastases. That would have meant a long, difficult period of treatment, with a much worse prognosis.”
Stronger focus on prevention and screening
Robert firmly believes that more attention must be given to screening and early detection – not just for colorectal cancer, but for all types of cancer.
“Governments must allocate sufficient funds for awareness campaigns and screening. It’s encouraging that the new administrations are committed to investing more in this. Healthcare providers should actively encourage patients to take part in screening programs. And we, as individuals, need to understand that cancer doesn’t just happen to ‘other people.’ We are all responsible for our own health.”
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