Tottenham FC supporting ‘Get to know cancer’
pharmafile | August 21, 2013 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | Boris Johnson, Cancer, NHS England, Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club has said it will support the NHS campaign ‘Get to know cancer’ for the 2013/2014 Barclays Premier League season.
With the backing of mayor of London Boris Johnson the north London club, its players and staff will be actively promoting awareness and early detection of cancer symptoms throughout the new football season that began in late August.
The team will be warming up for the match in campaign t-shirts, with staff wearing badges that display the ‘Get to know cancer – It’s treatable, even beatable’ slogan.
Campaign volunteers will also be present at the club’s ground at White Hart Lane to pass potentially life-saving information onto the 36,000 supporters expected to attend the game.
Johnson, who set up the London Health Improvement Board that aims to increase early diagnosis of cancer in London by 10% over three years, said: “Cancer is an issue that will affect around four in ten Londoners, but thousands of lives can be saved with early diagnosis.
“I’m delighted that Tottenham Hotspur is getting behind the ‘Get to know cancer’ campaign, and hope it will encourage people to feel more confident about dealing with and detecting the early signs of cancer.”
The campaign aims to ensure every Londoner can recognise the signs and symptoms of cancer and feels confident to consult their GP as soon as they notice something unusual.
Cancer survival rates in the UK have doubled over the past 40 years, and NHS England hopes an extra 1,000 lives in the capital can be saved every year.
It’s something Tottenham Hotspur is determined to help the campaign achieve, with the Club adopting the strapline ‘THFC – Tottenham Hotspur Fighting Cancer’.
Michael Dawson, the club’s captain, said: “As an English Premier League club with global appeal, we have the ability to raise awareness of important causes like this and we know that we can reach out to our fan base and beyond with the message that cancer is treatable, and even beatable, if detected early enough.”
“Therefore, I speak on behalf of all the players at the Club when I say that we are delighted to give our backing to ‘Get to know cancer’ and looking forward to the activities that will be taken place throughout the year.”
Dr Andy Mitchell, medical director of NHS England, added: “I am delighted that Tottenham Hotspur is backing the ‘Get to know cancer’ campaign. Together we are encouraging people to do the single most important thing to beat cancer – get help sooner.
“The earlier cancer is diagnosed, the better the chance of successful treatments. If we can match cancer survival rates with the best in the world, we can save an extra 1,000 lives in London every year. Cancer is treatable, even beatable.”
‘Get to know cancer’ trains volunteers to talk about cancer within their local communities. Around 300 ‘Cancer Activists’ have been recruited to date with dedicated training provided by Cancer Research UK.
Ben Adams
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