Lung cancer - early diagnosis saves lives
Barbara Follett MP is supporting Lung Cancer Awareness Month this November, and is urging the people of Stevenage and Hertfordshire to improve their knowledge about this terrible disease.
Pioneered in the UK by The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Relief, Lung Cancer Awareness Month is now in its fifth year. Its aim is to increase awareness about the disease, which in turn will lead to earlier diagnosis, which could save many lives.38,000 people are diagnosed with lung cancer each year in the UK – that’s over 100 people a day. And every day 92 people die from lung cancer. Shockingly, the average time from diagnosis to death is just six months. While smoking is a major risk factor for lung cancer, 10 per cent of people who develop lung cancer have never smoked.
Mrs Follett said “For 80 per cent of people with lung cancer their disease is inoperable because it has been diagnosed so late. If people were diagnosed at a much earlier stage, it would be possible for many more of them to have an operation that could potentially save their lives. This is why Lung Cancer Awareness Month is so important.”
Mrs Follett urged anyone who experiences any of the following symptoms for more than three weeks to visit their GP:
- a chest infection that won't go away, even with antibiotics
- a cough for more than three weeks
- coughing up blood
- feeling more tired than usual
- feeling very out of breath
- losing your voice but no sore throat
- chest pains
Issued: 01.11.05
Further information
Please contact Faye Bunch via the 'Contact' page, or by fax on 020 7219 1158.
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