Thousands of Britons are dying early because of ignorance and denial of cancer symptoms, according to a new survey from the charity Cancer Research UK published on Tuesday.
In a report of the survey, “Delay Kills”, the charity says latest figures suggest if Britain were to match the best cancer survival rates in Europe, 11,500 fewer people would die every year. Just matching the European average would save 6,000 to 7,000 lives every year.
Experts say Britain’s poor record in early diagnosis is to blame.
The survey asked 2,090 Britons questions about warning signs and symptoms of cancer.
More than three quarters of respondents failed to mention pain, coughing, bladder and bowel problems.
More than two thirds failed to list bleeding, and only about one in four mentioned weight loss or mole changes.
But perhaps the most alarming finding was that which revealed people’s attitudes to early possible signs of cancer when they find them.
37% of those who thought they had spotted potentially serious early signs of cancer said they might delay getting them checked because they were worried about what the result might be.
37% was also the proportion of respondents who said they might delay getting symptoms checked because it would be difficult to make an appointment to see their GP.
And more than a quarter gave the reason as being it might be a waste of the doctor’s time.
There was also a low level of awareness of some of the risk factors, the things that affect a person’s chances of developing the disease.
While there was a high awareness of smoking (83% mentioned this) less than half of all respondents mentioned any other factor.
The survey found people were particularly unaware of several life-style factors. Only 15% mentioned lack of exercise, and only 10% mentioned diet (low fruit and vegetable, or high red and/or processed meat intake), or being overweight.
Professor Peter Johnson, chief clinician for Cancer Research UK told the media:
“Our report highlights just how much more we have to do to raise awareness about the early signs of cancer.”
Johnson said treatment is much more likely to succeed when cancer is diagnosed early, before it has spread.
“That is why it is so important for people to be aware of things that might be early signs of cancer,” he added.
Johnson acknowledges the fear people have of hearing the bad news: “you have cancer”.
“But people need to know that catching the disease early gives them much better odds of surviving it. The best precaution anyone can take is to be on the lookout for any changes in their bodies that seem unusual for them and to get them checked by a doctor,” he urged.
The survey used the Cancer Awareness Measure (CAM) developed by researchers from Cancer Research UK, University College London, King’s College London and the University of Oxford in 2007-08.
The CAM is a series of validated questions designed to reliably assess awareness and knowledge of cancer, such as its signs and symptoms, risk factors, and what stops people going to the doctor when they have suspicions.
The Office for National Statistics carried out the survey with a random selection of 2,090 UK people over the age of 18 in 2010.
The report has spurred a new partnership between Cancer Research UK and the supermarket and retail giant Tesco, who funded the survey.
Under the new partnership, scientists will work on finding ways to close the gap in cancer survival rates between UK and the best in Europe.
As part of the project, Tesco has promised to raise £10m to fund 32 early diagnosis research projects around the UK.
The company is also launching a new in-store campaign that will include displays of leaflets of the early signs and symptoms of cancer at checkouts frequented by millions of Tesco customers every week.
Richard Brasher, chief executive of Tesco UK, said:
“We know that in many cases these things won’t turn out to be cancer. But don’t take the gamble of missing out on early diagnosis.”
Among the 32 projects that Tesco is helping to pay for is a research programme at Queen Mary, University of London. There, Professor Peter Sasieni and his team are determining whether human papillomavirus (HPV) testing in women aged 25 to 65, as part of screening for cervical cancer, is likely to save more lives than if the screening only included the smear test, that looks for abnormal changes in the cells of the cervix, a potential early sign of cancer.
Another project, led by Professor Wendy Atkin at Imperial College, London, is looking at ways to prevent bowel cancer by locating polyps and other more difficult to find pre-cancerous lesions in the large intestine.
The most recent annual figures show that in 2008, around 309,500 people in the UK were diagnosed with cancer, or about 850 people every day. And in 2009, the figures showed that 425 people died in the UK from cancer every day, that is about one death every four minutes.
Written by Catharine Paddock PhD