Charity puts £5m into fight against cancer

Yorkshire Cancer Research is seeking to attract some of the best researchers in the country to Hull to investigate issues including why so many local people report to their GPs with advanced cancer.

Last year just over a quarter of patients in the city were diagnosed with Stage 4 disease, the most advanced level of cancer, which reduces options for treatment.

The project is a partnership with the University of Hull, the Hull York Medical School and Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, with the researchers working out of the University’s new Allam Medical Building.

Dr Kathryn Scott, Interim Chief Executive at Yorkshire Cancer Research, said: “This investment is another huge step in achieving our goal to save 2,000 more lives in Yorkshire every year by 2025.

“We know we can have a significant impact in Hull by making sure people know how to spot the signs and symptoms of cancer and when to visit the doctor, but also that they understand the importance of attending screening appointments.

“We also need to work with GPs to ensure they are able to refer possible cancer patients to hospital as quickly as possible, and that healthcare professionals are able to deliver the best possible care to patients and their families once they have been referred.”

Among those to welcome the initiative is retired businessman Harry Good, 73, who has been given the all-clear after undergoing surgery and chemotherapy for lung cancer.

Mr Good, from Long Riston, was given antibiotics after coming down with what he thought was flu in 2015, but when it didn’t clear up his GP ordered an X-ray, which led to a series of tests, which eventually diagnosed lung cancer.

He said: “It’s very important you find these things early.

“A lot of people, myself included, over the years have had flu and a cough and just ignored it, and that’s the wrong thing to do.

“If you don’t feel 100 per cent, go to a doctor, let them check you out and ask the question - can you have an X-ray? You go through treatment, it’s not pleasant but it’s do-able and the end product is fantastic.

“When you walk out of there cured, it’s amazing.”

The city is the most deprived in Yorkshire and the third most in the country and has high levels of smoking and drinking. An estimated 8,720 people in Hull are living with or beyond cancer.

Professor Una Macleod, Dean of Hull York Medical School, who also works as a GP on the city’s Bransholme estate, said: “We welcome the funding from YCR for this important area of research to reduce inequalities in cancer outcomes and improve survival rates in Yorkshire.

“Cancer incidence, mortality and survival rates are often worse for those living in Yorkshire than across England as a whole, and they are especially bad in Hull.

“The picture worsens for the elderly and for those from socially-deprived communities.

“These research projects will help us understand why these differences exist, and how to reduce inequalities, speed up referrals, and improve access to care and treatment.”