Free health event at the Amex Stadium on 16 November
Albion in the Community (AITC) is holding a free men’s health drop-in at the American Express Community Stadium, with a particular focus on lung health.
AITC has organised the event, which is taking place on Saturday 16 November, to coincide with Lung Cancer Awareness Month, which runs throughout November.
Visitors will be given advice on lung health and, if eligible, offered an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) screening.
The screening is a way of checking if there is a bulge or swelling in the abdominal aorta, the main blood vessel which runs from the heart through the abdomen. In some people, as they get older, the aorta can become weak. It can then start to expand, forming an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA); people who develop such an aneurysm will often not notice any symptoms, but it can be incredibly serious if not detected.
AAA screening is a national NHS service which is routinely offered to men when they turn 65. Men over 65, however, can self-refer if they have not already been screened.
Along with family history and high blood pressure, smoking is among the strongest risk factors which increase a person’s chances of having an AAA – hence the screening being offered at AITC’s lung health-focused event.
Screening for AAA is not routinely offered to women or men under 65 as the risk of an AAA is much smaller in these groups.
Everyone attending the free AITC health event will also be able to find out more about local stop smoking services and get advice on reducing stress, eating healthily on a budget, and weight management. There will also be information on free local sport, activity and fitness groups and other local services.
Visitors will receive a voucher for 10% off at the Club Superstore valid for that day and there will be free giveaways, a prize draw to win a signed Brighton & Hove Albion shirt, and free health walk tasters around the stadium.
The free event will take place in Medical Imaging Partnership’s Brighton Diagnostic & Treatment Centre in the stadium’s East Stand between 10am and 3pm.
It has been organised as part of AITC’s Speak Up Against Cancer campaign, which is commissioned by NHS Brighton and Hove Clinical Commissioning Group and Brighton and Hove Public Health, and follows a similar event held in October focusing on women’s health.
Each year AITC delivers potentially life-saving information about the signs and symptoms of different cancers to thousands of people across the city.
In fact, since the end of the 2018/19 football season alone, AITC’s team has attended more than 100 local events and shared its Speak Up Against Cancer messages with more than 7,000 people via one-to-one conversations.
The 16 November event is being supported by Brighton and Hove Buses, which has donated 100 free bus vouchers to be given to people who have travelled to or from the event by bus, and Medical Imaging Partnership, which is providing the venue free of charge.
For more information on AITC’s local health projects and free activities, email: speakup@bhafcfoundation.org.uk, or call 01273 878269.