The Humber, Coast and Vale Cancer Alliance recruited its 1,000th Cancer Champion on Monday (29th April), as supermarket chain Asda hosted a training event at its Mount Pleasant store community hub in east Hull.
Almost 20,000 people in the Humber, Coast and Vale area are diagnosed with cancer each year; a rate significantly higher than the England average. With research showing that 4 in 10 cancers are preventable, over 1,000 Cancer Champions now have the knowledge to raise awareness about early signs and symptoms, promote healthy lifestyle choices and increase uptake of screening in their communities. The free training supports people to openly talk about cancer with their friends and family, which could minimise the risk of cancer and improve survival rates by helping those with cancer get diagnosed and treated earlier.
Lucy Turner, Humber, Coast and Vale Cancer Alliance Programme Director, said: “This is a real milestone for the Cancer Alliance and I would like to thank each of the 1,000 champions who have given up their time to attend a Cancer Alliance training session.
“As a society, we are in a better position to fight cancer than ever before. Cancer Champions are a key part of our strategy to share knowledge across our communities. We know that up to 40 per cent of cancers are preventable through lifestyle changes. We also know that cancers that have been diagnosed at an early stage, before they have had the chance to get too big or spread, are more likely to be treated successfully.
“I am proud to call myself a Cancer Champion. I want to join my fellow champions to use our passion, training and knowledge to work within our communities to support those at risk of developing cancer as well as helping to prevent avoidable cancer deaths by encouraging people to take up cancer screening invitations or go to their GP if they have symptoms they are worried about.”
Sarah Cranswick, Community Colleague at Asda Mount Pleasant, said: “We would love to see more of the Cancer Champion training at ASDA and look forward to working closely with Humber, Coast and Vale Cancer Alliance in the future.”
To find out more about Humber, Coast and Vale Cancer Champion Programme or to sign up for Cancer Champion training, email [email protected].
