'Don't Put Off Visiting Your GP' Says Cancer Charity, UK

Main Category: Lymphoma / Leukemia / Myeloma
Article Date: 14 May 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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Despite lymphoma being the 6th most common cancer in the UK, nearly 40% of people diagnosed with lymphatic cancer delayed visiting their GP after showing initial symptoms.

Recent research has been carried out by the Lymphoma Association to mark Lymphatic Cancer Awareness Week (10-17 May 2008). This patient-based study confirmed the charity's opinion that awareness of the symptoms of lymphoma are low, meaning that people showing these symptoms may put off a visit to their doctor. In fact, of the 1159 people surveyed, 20.7% had put their symptoms down to a virus, 19.6% assumed they were just run down and 19.5% attributed their symptoms to the menopause. Only 18.5% thought they may have cancer or another serious health condition.

The patient sample was also asked about their own initial and subsequent symptoms. The results showed that 58.8% had experienced an initial lump or swelling, often in the neck, armpit or groin. Other symptoms included tiredness, profuse sweating, itching and unexplained weight loss. The charity hopes that by raising awareness of the symptoms of lymphatic cancer, people showing these symptoms will be encouraged to visit their doctor.

As Melanie Burfitt, Chief Executive of the Lymphoma Association explains, "Nearly 11,000 people are diagnosed with lymphoma each year, though many people haven't even heard of it until they are affected. Prompt diagnosis is key to successful treatment. We want to encourage anyone who has initial symptoms (lumps, itching, excessive sweating at night, tiredness) which don't go away, to visit their GP as a priority."

About the Lymphoma Association

Founded by patients in 1986, the Lymphoma Association is the only specialist UK charity that provides accurate medical information and support to lymphatic cancer patients, their families and friends.

Every year, nearly 11,000 new cases of lymphoma are identified in the UK alone, making it the 6th most common cancer diagnosed by clinicians, and the most common cancer affecting the under 30 age group.

The services that we offer include a freephone patient helpline, free patient literature, a buddy scheme with telephone links to others with similar experiences, local support groups, regional patient conferences and comprehensive information on our award winning websites. In addition to this, the organisation is currently running a pilot project which will establish five Lymphoma Association Clinical Nurse Specialist posts within NHS Haematology Units by the end of 2007.

The Lymphoma Association is also the founder member of the Lymphatic Cancer Alliance, a UK based coalition of four charities (the others' being Cancerbackup, Leukaemia Care and the Leukaemia Research Fund) that have come together to create awareness of lymphoma, which should result in better support, care and treatment for lymphatic cancer patients everywhere.

We also represent the patient perspective by providing evidence for the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) appraisals, being on the steering committee of the NHS Coalition for Cancer Information (CCI) and by being a founder member of the Lymphoma Coalition - an international group of lymphoma patient support organisations.

Lymphoma Association

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