Thousands of people in Humber and North Yorkshire are being invited to share their attitudes, awareness and understanding of cancer in a regional survey carried out by York St John University on behalf of Humber and North Yorkshire Cancer Alliance.
The Cancer Alliance has commissioned the university’s Institute for Health and Care Improvement (IHCI) and local Healthwatch organisations to undertake the survey of more than 5,600 people to discover their attitudes, awareness and understanding of cancer in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire, North East Lincolnshire, York and North Yorkshire.
According to the Office for National Statistics, the overall Yorkshire and Humber area has a standardised cancer incidence rate of 617 people diagnosed per 100,000 people – a rate significantly higher than the England average.
The objectives of the cancer awareness (CAM) survey are to:
- Measure the public’s awareness of the symptoms and risk factors of cancer as well as the barriers to seeking help
- Gain a deeper understanding and insight of cancer awareness within the region’s differing communities and populations
- Benchmark the region’s varied populations in terms of their cancer awareness and understanding of symptoms
The survey launches in October and the results are due to be published in March next year.
Lucy Turner, Managing Director, Humber and North Yorkshire Cancer Alliance, said: “Humber and North Yorkshire is an area with a diverse geography and significant variance in cancer diagnosis between different population groups. Understanding the challenges and barriers to early diagnosis within all the communities in Humber and North Yorkshire in an inclusive way is a key priority for the Cancer Alliance.
“The previous Cancer Awareness Measures survey was conducted in 2010 across a smaller geography, so the Cancer Alliance wanted to commission a new survey to better understand the needs of our varied populations.
“The Cancer Alliance intends to use the findings and learnings from the survey to inform and direct both internal strategic plans and interventions but also the potential to contribute to NHS providers thinking for future planning of cancer services.”
Academics across different disciplines at York St John University are working with IHCI researchers to set up and run the survey, analyse the responses and report on the data findings. They aim to identify key differences in the responses between different groups of residents and also compare regional results to the national data. They will be working closely with the Cancer Alliance to explore any differences and then disseminate the findings.
The CAM survey findings will support and inform the needs of NHS commissioners and providers and contribute to gaining a more granular understanding of differences in community awareness and understanding of cancer, inclusive of risks, signs, symptoms, and screening. The findings will also inform both internal strategic plans and interventions but also the potential to contribute to NHS providers thinking for future planning of cancer services. This will include targeted support and resources for identified communities.
Professor Garry Tew, Director of York St John University’s Institute for Health and Care Improvement, said: “The IHCI is delighted to be leading the delivery of this survey within the Humber and North Yorkshire region which will measure the public’s cancer awareness, attitudes and behaviours across key cancer topics.
“The results of this survey will support the development of cancer prevention and early diagnosis initiatives. This work highlights the growing success of the IHCI as it continues to develop and collaborate with key partners across the health landscape.”
People living in the six areas of Humber and North Yorkshire – Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire, North East Lincolnshire, York and North Yorkshire – are being encouraged to take part in the survey: https://bit.ly/47MwBkg.
