Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
How to do a FIT stool test at home, step by step | CION Cancer Clinics
A FIT is a simple stool test you do in your own toilet. You scrape a tiny amount of stool onto a stick, seal it in a tube and return it to the lab, which checks for hidden blood. This page walks you through each step, the mistakes that spoil a sample, and what a positive or negative result does and does not mean. It is a screening test, never a diagnosis. At CION Cancer Clinics, our specialists help you judge which bowel symptoms need tests and plan screening that fits your risk.
NG
Medically reviewed by Dr. Naresh GunduConsultant Medical Oncologist · MBBS, DNB (Internal Medicine), DM (Medical Oncology, AIIMS) · last reviewed October 2026, next review due October 2027
17+specialists on panel
15,000+patients treated
35+centres across Telangana & AP
4.8★ / 800+Google rating
On this page
The short answer
Is a FIT test really something you can do yourself?
Yes. A FIT, short for faecal immunochemical test, is designed to be done at home, in your own toilet, without a nurse. You collect a tiny scraping of one stool with the stick inside the kit, close it, and hand the tube back to the laboratory. The lab looks for human blood that is too small to see with the eye.
What the test is looking for
Polyps and early cancers in the colon can ooze a little blood that never shows on the toilet paper. The FIT picks up that hidden blood. It does not look for cancer cells, and it cannot see inside the bowel. That is why a FIT is a screening test, a sorting test for people who feel well, and never a diagnosis.
Who this page is for
It is written for a healthy adult who has been given a kit, bought one, or is deciding whether to ask for one. If you already have bleeding, a change in your bowel habit, or unexplained tiredness, a FIT is the wrong test for you. Those symptoms need a doctor and usually a colonoscopy, whatever a stool test shows. Start with what blood in the stool usually means instead.
A FIT answers one narrow question: is there hidden blood in this sample? Everything else comes from the next test.Before you open the kit
What is in the box, and what to check first
Most failed tests fail before the sample is taken. Three checks save a second trip to the lab.
The tube and the stick
A small plastic tube with liquid inside and a grooved stick attached to the cap. The groove is what collects the sample. There is no need to fill anything; a smear across the groove is the whole job.
Also usually in the box
- A leaflet with the lab's own pictures
- A label for your name and the date
- A return bag or envelope
The expiry date
The liquid in the tube keeps the blood stable, and it has a shelf life. Check the date printed on the tube before you begin. A kit that sat in a cupboard since a health camp may be past it.
If the date has passed, ask the lab for a fresh tube. Do not use it and hope.Your own timing
You do not need to fast, stop iron tablets, or change what you eat for a FIT. Women are usually asked to wait until a period has finished, and anyone with bleeding piles should wait until the bleeding has settled, because either can give a positive result for the wrong reason.
Worth asking the lab about
- How quickly the tube must reach them
- Whether it can go in the fridge overnight
- How the result will be sent to you
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistStep by step
How do you actually take the sample?
Catch the stool before it touches water
Stool that has sat in toilet water gives a poor sample. Lay a few sheets of newspaper or toilet paper across the bowl, or use a clean disposable container. With an Indian-style toilet, a folded sheet of paper on the floor of the pan works well.
Scrape the stick, lightly, in a few places
Unscrew the cap and drag the grooved tip across the surface of the stool in several spots. You want the groove coated, not a lump. Too much stool is the most common reason a lab rejects a sample.
Close the tube and shake it gently
Push the stick back in until the cap clicks shut. Do not open it again. A gentle shake mixes the sample into the liquid. Write your name, and the date and time, on the label.
Wash, bag, and return it soon
Wash your hands, put the tube in the return bag, and get it to the lab as soon as the leaflet says, usually within a few days. If you cannot go the same day, most labs allow the sealed tube to sit in the fridge overnight, away from food. Flush the rest as normal.
On the leaflet and the report
The words you will meet, in plain language
- FIT
- Faecal immunochemical test. It uses an antibody that reacts only to human blood, so food does not confuse it the way the older test could be confused.
- FOBT or gFOBT
- The older guaiac stool test, which needed three samples and a diet change. Many Indian labs still offer it, so ask for the FIT by name.
- Occult blood
- Hidden blood, meaning blood in the stool that cannot be seen. A FIT is sometimes listed on a lab menu as a stool occult blood test.
- Qualitative result
- A report that simply says positive or negative. This is what most home kits give.
- Quantitative result
- A report that gives a number for the amount of blood found. The lab sets a cut-off, and above it the result counts as positive.
- Inadequate sample
- The lab could not read it: too much stool, a leaking tube, an old kit or a late return. It is not a result, and the test must be repeated.
Leave a number, we will call you
One field. No form to fill in, and no charge for the call.
Commonly believed
Four things people assume about a home stool test
"A negative result means I do not have colon cancer."
It means no hidden blood was found in that one sample on that one day. Some polyps and cancers do not bleed every day, which is why screening is repeated and why a negative FIT never cancels a symptom.
"A positive result means I have cancer."
Most positive results are not cancer. Piles, a small tear, a polyp or inflammation can all leave blood behind. A positive FIT means one thing: you need a colonoscopy to find out where the blood came from.
"I have no symptoms, so there is no point."
The test is built for people with no symptoms. Polyps and early cancers rarely cause any. If you waited for a symptom, you would be waiting for the stage at which screening has already failed.
"Once is enough."
A FIT works as a routine, repeated every year or two across your middle and later decades, not as a single event. One clean result in your forties says nothing about your fifties.
Being straight with you
What this page cannot tell you
It cannot tell you whether you have colon cancer, and neither can the kit. A FIT sorts a healthy population into people who need a closer look and people who do not. The closer look is a colonoscopy, carried out by a gastroenterologist at an accredited partner hospital. If your result comes back positive, CION can arrange it and explain what the findings mean.
It cannot read your result for you
Labs use different cut-offs and different wording. A number on a quantitative report means something only against that lab's own threshold. Take the report to a doctor rather than comparing it with a figure you found online.
Who this does not apply to
A FIT is not the right test for someone with symptoms, for someone with a strong family history of colon cancer, for people with a known polyposis or Lynch syndrome, or for anyone with long-standing ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. Those groups are usually advised to have colonoscopy directly, on a schedule set by their doctor. The high-risk pathway explains why.
Not sure whether you are average risk? Call the helpline, describe your history, and someone will tell you honestly which test fits.Questions we are asked
Common questions about doing a FIT at home
Where do I get a FIT kit in Hyderabad?
Most large diagnostic laboratories supply one on request, and some will send a collector to your home. Ask for the immunochemical test by name, because some labs still default to the older guaiac test. CION can arrange a kit through a diagnostic partner if you prefer.
Do I need to stop eating meat or taking iron first?
No. The FIT reacts only to human blood, so meat, vegetables and iron tablets do not affect it. The older guaiac test needed those restrictions, which is one reason so many people never completed it. Eat normally and take your usual medicines.
What if I am on blood thinners or aspirin?
Do not stop them for the test. They can make a minor source of bleeding more likely to show, which may lead to a colonoscopy that finds nothing serious. Tell the doctor who reads your result what you take, and let them weigh it.
Can I do the test during my period or with bleeding piles?
Better to wait. Blood from either source can reach the sample and give a positive result that has nothing to do with the colon. Take the sample a few days after the bleeding has stopped. If the piles bleed constantly, tell your doctor; that itself needs looking at.
I scooped too much. Should I start again?
Yes, with a fresh kit. A tube packed with stool is the commonest reason a lab reports an inadequate sample, and you will be asked to repeat it anyway. Ask the lab for another tube rather than trying to remove some from the first one.
How long does the result take?
Usually a few days once the lab receives the tube, though it varies between laboratories. Ask when you hand it in. If a result has not reached you in the time they promised, chase it. An unread result helps nobody.
Is one sample enough, or do I need three?
One sample is the standard for a FIT. The three-sample routine belongs to the older guaiac test. If a lab asks you for three tubes, check which test they are running and whether an immunochemical kit is available instead.
My result is positive. What now?
Do not panic, and do not repeat the FIT to see if it changes. A positive result is an instruction to have a colonoscopy. What happens after a positive FIT walks through the next weeks, and CION can arrange the procedure and the follow-up.
Your Specialists
Meet CION's colon cancer specialists. Bring your colonoscopy, scan or biopsy report.
Our surgical and medical oncologists plan colon cancer care together: which operation, whether chemotherapy is needed, and the follow-up that comes after.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
Surgical Oncologist
Want a specific doctor for your case? Mention them when booking.
Book Free ConsultationBook an appointment with our specialist
Share your name and number — we'll call you back within 30 minutes to schedule your consultation.
Sources
- NHS — Bowel cancer screening
- American Cancer Society — Colorectal Cancer Screening Tests
- National Cancer Institute — Screening Tests to Detect Colorectal Cancer and Polyps
- Cancer Research UK — Bowel cancer screening
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
FIT (Faecal Immunochemical Test) ExplainedWhat the test measures and why it is a screening test, not a diagnosisA Positive FIT Result: What Happens NextThe colonoscopy that follows a positive result, step by stepA Negative FIT Result: What It Does Not Rule OutWhy a clear result does not cancel a symptomScreening Options ComparedHow a FIT stacks up against colonoscopy and the other tests
Talk to us
Got a FIT result and not sure what comes next?
Tell us what the report says and whether you have any symptoms. We will explain it plainly and arrange a colonoscopy through a partner hospital if one is needed. One helpline serves every CION centre.