A CLOSE SHAVE WITH CANCER — MACMILLAN CANCER EXPERTS HOST AWARENESS EVENT AT LEWISHAM BARBERSHOP
Contact: Rachel Godman-Morris / 0207 091 2250Twitter: @MacmillanLondon / Facebook: @LondonMacmillan
A barbershop in Lewisham hosted a unique outreach event for customers last night (Thursday, 25th April). Prestige Barbershop welcomed representatives from Macmillan, to chat with customers and staff about the importance of cancer awareness and to answer a range of questions; from signs and symptoms to work and welfare advice.
Perpetua Egan, Macmillan Engagement Lead for South East London, said:
“Macmillan wants to help anyone impacted by cancer find their best way through. Awareness events such as these bring Macmillan’s cancer experts right to the heart of our local communities, as not everyone has the time to visit the GP or they might have worries they don’t want to discuss with friends and family. Coming to venues such as Prestige Barbershop offers us a fantastic new way to reach as many Londoners as possible; particularly groups that we traditionally may not have connected with as much as we’d have liked.
“We also want to make people aware that a cancer diagnosis no longer means a death sentence and events like this can help dispel some myths and taboos around the disease — it’s crucial to get people talking and ensure that everyone knows Macmillan is right there with them, so that no one struggles in silence.”
Robert Riley, proprietor of Prestige Barbershop in Brockley Cross explained why he was inspired to host the Macmillan cancer awareness event at his barbershop: “Cancer doesn’t discriminate, so it’s been great to have an open and honest conversation about the disease, as well as spreading the word about the help people can get from Macmillan Cancer Support. “
If you have questions about cancer, visit www.macmillan.org.uk or call Macmillan free on 0808 808 00 00 (7 days a week, 8am to 8pm). You can find out about Macmillan services near you at http://www.macmillan.org.uk/in-your-area/choose-location.html
Macmillan is funded almost entirely by donations and receives no government funding. We can only fund events like this thanks to our amazing supporters. Visit macmillan.org.uk/getinvolved today to donate or volunteer.
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For further information, please contact:
Rachel Godman-Morris, Communications Officer — London, Macmillan Cancer Support 0207 091 2250 (out of hours 07801 307068) / rgmorris@macmillan.org.uk
Main photo: Robert Riley, Proprietor of Prestige Barbershop and customer
Photo credits: Macmillan Cancer Support
Notes to Editors
About Macmillan Cancer Support in Greater London
In 2016, there were nearly 33,500 cancer cases diagnosed in London1. There are around 210,000 people living with cancer in London2, and the sad truth is, this number could increase to an estimated 340,000 by 20303.
One in two people in the UK are likely to get cancer in their lifetime4. Cancer can affect everything, including a person’s body, relationships and finances.
Macmillan Cancer Support provides practical, emotional and personal support to people affected by cancer every year. The charity is there to support people during treatment, help with work and money worries, and listen when people need to talk about their feelings.
In 2016, there were around 1060 Macmillan health and social care professional posts, often based at hospitals and in the community, in London5 to support people with cancer and their families through difficult times. More than 7,630 people called the Macmillan Support Line for information and support. Macmillan mobile information buses were out and about in supermarkets, town centres, faith centres and workplaces in London, visited by around 7,650 local people for support. To help with money worries, more than £7 million in unclaimed benefits was unlocked for people in London by the Macmillan Support Line and in 2018, 3,919 people received Macmillan Grants, totalling over £1.4 million.
Macmillan receives no government funding and relies on generous donations from the public. People up and down the country show their support for Macmillan — from hosting or attending a World’s Biggest Coffee Morning to running a marathon or giving up alcohol — so the charity can help more and more people affected by cancer every year.
Life with cancer is still your life and Macmillan is there to help you live it. If you want information or just to chat, call 0808 808 00 00 (7 days a week, 8am to 8pm) or visit www.macmillan.org.uk. To get involved or make a donation please call 0300 1000 200.
References:
1 Registrations of newly diagnosed cases of cancer by region of residence. Cancer Registration Statistics, England, 2016. Source: Office for National Statistics, 2018.
2 Cancer Prevalence in England — 21 year prevalence by demographic and geographic measures. Published by the Transforming Cancer Services Team (TCST) in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support and NCRAS, in January 2018. Available at: http://www.ncin.org.uk/about_ncin/releases
3 Projections to 2030 derived from: Maddams J, Utley M, Moller H. 2012. Projections of cancer prevalence in the United Kingdom (Scenario 1), 2010–2040. Br J Cancer 2012; 107: 1195–1202. This is an indicative future estimate. These figures serve as indicators and are likely to change as more data becomes available. Growth rates in prevalence by region are based on a single UK wide growth rate.
4. Ahmad AS, Ormiston-Smith N, Sasieni PD. Trends in the lifetime risk of developing cancer in Great Britain: comparison of risk for those born from 1930 to 1960. British Journal of Cancer. 2015;112(5):943–947. doi:10.1038/bjc.2014.606.
5. All services data is for 2016. Source: Macmillan Cancer Support. Data is only included where a valid postcode was recorded. Grants data is based on unaudited data and may be subject to change. Numbers have been rounded and these figures should be considered as indicative.
