One in seven unaware of signs of cancer

Published on Sunday 16 August 2009 21:51

ONE in seven people cannot name a single symptom of cancer, according to a poll out today.

Almost one in five (19 per cent) men and one in ten (10 per cent) women are unaware of a sign of the disease.

Among people from ethnic minority backgrounds, 28 per cent could not recall a symptom compared with 13 per cent of those who described themselves as white.

Lumps, changes to moles and unusual bleeding are all signs of cancer.

Sara Hiom, director of health information at Cancer Research UK, which carried out the poll, said: "It's really important that people can recognise cancer symptoms and feel that they can report concerns to their GP at an early stage.

"While it's good news that most people correctly named some cancer symptoms, we're concerned by the number of people who drew a complete blank.

"When cancers are detected earlier, treatment is usually more effective and often milder.

"We're not expecting people to be able to recall every symptom, but being generally aware of changes that could be a sign of cancer could make a crucial difference for people who do develop the disease."