Mirrors to reflect importance of early cancer diagnosis as part of NHS campaign

NHS England (NHSE) is set to use mirrors across the country to reflect the importance of early cancer diagnosis as part of a new campaign in UK gyms.

The initiative will feature stickers adorning the messages, ‘Check you out’ and ‘Know what’s normal for you’ across mirrors in 240 leisure centres run by Better, the UK’s largest leisure charitable social enterprise.

Survey results

The move comes as a new survey finds that only around a half (55%) of respondents check their bodies for physical changes regularly – one in 10 (12%) do no checks at all.

The survey of 2,000 people also revealed that one in five (20%) are not aware at all of any type of cancer sign; this is particularly prevalent among the younger demographic.

A third (33%) of those aged 18-34 reported they were not aware of any symptoms, while a sixth (16%) said the same for those aged 35 and above.

The cancers which people had the highest awareness of symptoms were:

• Breast cancer (59%)
• Skin cancer (50%)
• Bowel cancer (47%)

Women (68%) were more likely than men (56%) to recognise a lump or swelling and seek medical advice.

Better partnership

“Finding cancer early is key to successful treatment and survival, and this means that we need people who have new symptoms to come forward as soon as they spot them,” said NHSE’s national clinical cancer director, Professor Peter Johnson.

He added: “This is why it’s vital that people are aware of their bodies, take notice of any change from what is normal for them, and get it checked out immediately.

“The partnership with Better helps us to reach more people and remind them to check themselves at a time and a place that works for them. It’s a simple thing that anyone can do, but it really can save your life.”

Customer and communities director for GLL, the not-for-profit charitable social enterprise that runs Better leisure centres, Joe Rham, commented: “Our aim is to improve health and wellbeing in local communities and we’re delighted to be partnering with NHS England in this vital campaign.

“The survey we conducted clearly indicates a need to raise awareness of potential signs of cancer and the mirror stickers will hopefully act as a timely reminder to our customers to check themselves regularly.”

The latest cancer statistics show that the NHS met the 28-day faster diagnosis standard for the second month in a row, with over three-quarters (76.3%) of patients getting a diagnosis or an all-clear within four weeks.

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