More than half of British adults cannot name any blood cancer symptom
More than half of British adults cannot name any symptom of blood cancer despite it being one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in the UK, a charity has warned.
Bloodwise said it found just 1% of people questioned said they were “very confident” they could identify common symptoms, even though it is the third biggest cause of cancer deaths.
One in 19 people will be diagnosed with blood cancers, which include leukaemia, lymphoma, and myeloma, and they kill more people every year than either breast or prostate cancer.
Just under a third (32%) of survey respondents knew that fatigue was a common symptom, while one in 10 correctly identified bruising (11%) and weight loss (10%) as signs.
Recall of other common symptoms of blood cancer was even lower, with only one in 20 (5%) respondents identifying aches and pains, 2% citing repeated infections/a weak immune system, 2% identifying lumps and just 1% listing night sweats/sweating.
When people were asked to spontaneously list what they thought were common signs, more than half (52%) of those questioned said they did not know any.
The YouGov poll of more than 2,000 British adults was commissioned by Bloodwise, which said the findings highlight an urgent need to raise public awareness of blood cancers.
Sarah Porch, head of information and support services, said: “Symptoms such as fatigue, weight loss and night sweats can sometimes be dismissed or downplayed.
“It’s very worrying that public awareness that these could be signs of blood cancer continues to be so low.
“Getting diagnosed early can improve the success of treatment for a number of types of blood cancer.
“If symptoms cannot be explained and are persistent, people should make an appointment with their GP. While it is unlikely to be anything serious, it is important to get it checked out.”
Bloodwise is a charity partner in the nationwide Make Blood Cancer Visible campaign, fronted by Dame Kelly Holmes who lost her mother Pam to blood cancer last year.
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