Don’t be put off contacting your GP if you have cancer concerns
Anyone noticing any of the early signs or symptoms of different cancers should not be put off contacting their GP, according to the team behind Albion in the Community’s Speak Up Against Cancer campaign.
Albion in the Community’s long-running campaign has seen the charity work hard to raise local awareness of the early warning signs of a range of different cancers. As well as sharing details of what symptoms to look out for, central to that campaign has been the message that people should contact their GP as soon as they are worried or notice any changes.
Research shows that the earlier a cancer is diagnosed, the more likely it is that treatment will be successful.
For example, while one in eight women in the UK will develop breast cancer during their lifetime, if caught early more than 90% of breast cancers can be treated successfully.
A recent nationwide survey, however, revealed that nearly 50% of people would have concerns about seeking help from the NHS during the coronavirus pandemic.
Worries about getting coronavirus or passing it on to their family were among the top reasons people gave for not wanting to ask for help, with others saying they were reluctant to take up NHS resources at such a busy time.
Delaying contacting their GP could, however, have serious consequences for patients concerned about potential cancer symptoms, so the NHS has launched a new campaign to stress the importance of still seeking professional help.
Albion in the Community is supporting that campaign and Sue Brown, the charity’s health manager, stressed local cancer services were open for business.
They said, “Finding a cancer as early as possible is so important and makes any treatment far more likely to be successful.
“It is completely understandable that people are worried at the moment or perhaps thinking they might take up valuable NHS time, but it is vital that anyone who has noticed any differences which could point towards cancer contact their GP.
“Our advice to people would be to spend some time on our website familiarising themselves with what to look for, and if they are at all worried to contact their GP straight away.”
For more information on the signs and symptoms of different cancers, visit: www.speakupagainstcancer.org.