Local leisure centres helping more people to be cancer-aware

Messages that prompt gym-goers to look out for potential signs of cancer have appeared in the changing rooms of several leisure centres across BSW.

Stickers reminding people to check themselves regularly now adorn changing room mirrors in a number of local facilities run by the leisure centre chain Better.

The eye-catching stickers feature the message ‘check you out’ and ‘know what’s normal for you’, before reminding people that if something in their body doesn’t feel right, to contact their GP practice.

The scheme is the latest push by the NHS to find cancers at an earlier stage, with Better joining several other partners, such as supermarkets and washroom hygiene specialists, to highlight cancer messages to the public.

The new initiative comes as a survey of more than 2,000 people by Better found that only 55 per cent of respondents check their bodies for physical changes regularly, with one in ten not checking at all.

Professor Peter Johnson, National Clinical Director for Cance, NHS England, said: “The partnership with Better helps us to reach more people and remind them to check themselves at a time and a place that works for them.

“It’s a simple thing that anyone can do, but it really can save your life.”

To find out more about the signs and symptoms of cancer, visit www.nhs.uk.