MORE WOMEN THAN EVER ARE SURVIVING BREAST CANCER

More women survive breast cancer today thanks to research, earlier detection and better treatments.  But it is a common disease and the number of cases is rising.

The facts

• Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK apart from non melanoma skin cancer.
• More than 42,000 cases of breast cancer are diagnosed each year in the UK .
• One in nine women in the UK will develop breast cancer during their lifetime.
• Age is the biggest risk factor for breast cancer - four out of five cases occur after the age of 50.
• Five year survival rates for breast cancer have improved by 20 per cent, up to 80 per cent in the last 20 years
• Cancer Research UK is the leading funder of research into breast cancer in the UK and spent more than £25 million on research into the disease last year

Early detection saves lives

Be breast aware and follow the five point code.

• Know what is normal for you
• Look at and feel your breasts
• Know what changes to look for
• Report any changes without delay
• Go for breast screening if you are over 50

What changes should I look for?

Most changes are not cause by cancer but it is very important to report anything unusual to your doctor.  Look for.

• Changes in the shape, size or feel of your breasts
• A new lump or thickening in one breast or armpit
• Any puckering, dimpling or redness of the skin
• Changes in the position of the nipple, a a rash or nipple discharge
• Pain or discomfort that is new to you and felt only on one side

For more information about breast cancer, visit www.cancerhelp.org.uk or http://info.cancerresearchuk.org

By supporting Cancer Research UK 's All Join Together campaign, you can help us to raise awareness of breast cancer and funds for scientific research into the disease. 

For more information please visit www.cancerresearchuk.org/breastcancer

Click on our Charities page to see how Ladies Circle helps Cancer Research UK

Be part of a genetic map of Britain

Could your family be descended from Saxon farmers?  Or Norman invaders?  Or even Viking warriors?  And could our colonising ancestors be responsible for the common diseases that affect modern day Britain ?

Cancer Research UK is supporting a national study, funded by the Wellcome Trust, to help answer these questions and is looking for volunteers from rural areas to simply give a sample of their DNA.

The People of the British Isles Project aims to collect blood samples from 3,500 people whose families are from rural populations throughout theUK .  The data collected will be used to explore historic patterns of movement within and between different regions and build up a genetic map of Britain .  It will be enormously helpful in studies of inherited susceptibility to common diseases such as cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's disease.

If you are over 18 and born in the same rural locality as your parents and all four grandparents, the team leading the study would love to hear from you.  All they need is 30 minutes of your time to fill in a brief questionnaire and about 20ml of your blood.

If you would like to volunteer for the project or would first like some further information, please contact:

Susan Tonks of the Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Radcliffe Infirmary,Road,Oxford.

Tel 01865 228 627.

E-mail [email protected]

Or check out www.peopleofthebritishisles.org