Shropshire encourages people to get a persistent cough checked by GP

Health organisations across Shropshire are encouraging people who’ve had a cough for more than three weeks to get it checked by their GP.

Shropshire Council’s public health team, along with Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust, and Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust are asking residents, as part of the national Be Clear on Cancer Campaign launched this week.

The lung cancer campaign, supported by Shropshire’s health organisations, is running from 2 July 2013 to 11 August 2013, and aims to increase awareness of the key symptoms of lung cancer and encourage those with symptoms to visit their doctor.

The earlier cancer is found, the more treatable it is.

The main symptom is a persistent cough for three weeks or more.  Other symptoms include:

• a cough that has got worse or changes
• repeated chest infections
• coughing up blood
• breathlessness
• feeling more tired than usual for some time
• losing weight for no obvious reason
• an ache or pain in your chest or shoulder that has lasted some time. 

In Shropshire there were 180 cases of lung cancer diagnosed in 2010.  The disease claimed more than 157 lives in the same year.

Shropshire’s health teams are urging people not to ignore a persistent cough.

Dr Caron Morton, Accountable Officer at Shropshire CCG, said:

“As a local GP, I can’t stress enough the importance of an early diagnosis.  If you have had a persistent cough for three weeks or more please book an appointment with your GP.  It might be nothing, but it is better to make sure.  Please don’t be put off from making an appointment, your GP would want to review you for an ongoing cough.  If someone you know has had a cough for more than three weeks, encourage them to book an appointment.”

Karen Calder, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for health, added:

“The earlier lung cancer is diagnosed the better the chance of survival.  By raising more awareness of the symptoms, we hope we can encourage more people to come forward and hopefully start saving more lives.  If you notice any of these symptoms, please make an appointment to see your doctor.”

Professor Rod Thomson, Shropshire Council’s director of public health, added:

“Smoking is the biggest cause of lung cancer.  It’s not just those who smoke who are susceptible to this disease but also those around them who breathe in their smoke.  As well as encouraging people to come forward and speak to their doctor about a persistent cough, I would also encourage people to come forward and get advice on how to stop smoking.”

For further information about the signs and symptoms of lung cancer, visit www.nhs.uk/lungcancer.  For information on services to help with stopping smoking contact NHS Smokefree Helpline on 0800 022 4332 or visit www.smokefree.nhs.uk/ways-to-quit.

For more information about the Be Clear on Cancer Campaign visit http://campaigns.dh.gov.uk/category/beclearoncancer/.  You can also follow the campaign on twitter @beclearoncancer.

Further information

The National NHS Be Clear on Cancer campaign will see adverts – fronted by real GPs – on TV, print and radio until mid-August.  Face-to-face events will also take place in shopping centres across the country.

The lung cancer campaign run by Public Health England (PHE), in partnership with Cancer Research, the Department of Health and NHS England, was relaunched on Tuesday 2 July and will run to 11 August.  By running the campaign again, the aim is to continue increasing awareness of the key symptoms of lung cancer and encourage those with symptoms to visit their doctor sooner.

Lung cancer is currently England’s biggest cancer killer, causing around 28,000 deaths each year, with 8,172 cases in the Midlands and East of England (see note 1).  Those diagnosed at the earliest stage are five times more likely to survive lung cancer for at least five years than those diagnosed at a late stage. (see note 2)

Almost 24,000 people a year in England receive a lung cancer diagnosis when the disease is at a late stage (see note 3) – only around 15 per cent of cases are diagnosed at the earliest stage, when treatment is most likely to be successful.

Figures released by Public Health England (PHE) this week reveal that people in the Midlands and East of England may be unaware of the symptoms of lung cancer.  One of the reasons behind the regions low early diagnosis rate is the public’s lack of awareness about the disease and its symptoms.  New survey data shows (see note 4):

• Almost 75 per cent of people in the Midlands and east of England are unaware that lung cancer is England’s biggest cancer killer;
• Despite the fact that lung cancer is most common in people aged over 50, 27 per cent of people in the Midlands and east of England think that all age groups are equally at risk of lung cancer;
• 38 per cent of people are unaware that a cough that has lasted three weeks or more is a potential symptom of lung cancer.
  

  ---

  [1] Source: Data provided by Public Health England, West Midlands Knowledge & Intelligence Team, on behalf of the United Kingdom Association of Cancer Registries, May 2013