Blood cancer is the UK’s third biggest cancer killer, and yet awareness and understanding of it is much lower than for other types of cancer.
Did you know that blood cancer is the fifth most common cancer in the UK, with over 41,000 people being diagnosed with it every year?
It is the most common type of childhood cancer. Every year, more than 500 children aged under 15 are diagnosed with blood cancer. Of these, about 400 have childhood leukaemia and about 100 have lymphoma. The risk of blood cancer goes up as you get older, and just under 40% of people diagnosed with it are aged 75 or over.
Follow this link for more information about blood cancer signs and symptoms
Our role in raising awareness of cancer
Raising awareness of cancer is a key part of our Communities Against Cancer Project. We deliver Cancer Awareness Workshops to VCSE organisations across Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Dorset. In these workshops we discuss cancer signs and symptoms and encourage individuals to visit a GP or attend health screenings.
Helping to address health inequalities
We also help address the many health inequalities in the field of cancer diagnosis and healthcare. For example, there are health inequalities in the UK that affect Black people’s experience of blood cancer, from diagnosis to treatment and beyond. Recent research reports that:
- 6 out of 10 Black people in the UK (60%) do not believe their health is equally protected by the NHS compared to white people. (Clearview, 2020)
- Ethnic bias and racial discrimination lower the standards of care Black people receive, and lead to higher mistrust of the healthcare system. (Clearview, 2022)
- Black people in the UK are less likely than white people to take part in a clinical trial to treat blood cancer. (Smart, 2021)
- Not enough Black people are registered to donate stem cells. So Black people are less likely than white people to find an unrelated matched donor for a stem cell transplant. (ACLT and Anthony Nolan)
Early diagnosis can lead to better outcomes
It is important to get signs and symptoms checked by a medical specialist. It might not be cancer but it’s always worth a check. We also know that early diagnosis often leads to more positive outcomes.
Blood cancer survival rates are improving. The Office for National Statistics and Public Health England found that sixty per cent of people with blood cancer are now expected to live at least five years. This is an increase of 6.2 percentage points between 2010 and 2016 and equates to over 1,500 more blood cancer survivors in England each year.
Would your organisation like to help raise cancer awareness?
If you’d like to join one of our workshops please register now. Grants of up to £2,500 are available. To find more about Communities Against Cancer project, please see below.
Follow this link to join a workshop
Follow this link to learn more about Communities Against Cancer
