Cross Cancer Out

Damian Green is backing an appeal from Cancer Research UK to help save the lives of more people with cancer in the constituency and across the UK.

He met staff and volunteers at the charity’s shop in Ashford on Friday 16th January to find out more about how to beat the disease sooner.

Every hour, around five people are diagnosed with cancer in the South East.

With predictions showing the number of people with the disease is set to rise steeply by 2030, Cancer Research UK says determined political action is urgently needed to help more people survive.

So in the run up to the General Election the charity has launched a new campaign – ‘Cross Cancer Out’- asking election candidates to back a raft of vital measures to ensure cancer patients are diagnosed much earlier and have greater access to the best possible treatments.

Damian said: “While more people in Ashford will be diagnosed with cancer in the future, there is good news - Cancer Research UK’s work is helping to ensure more men, women and children survive.

“It is people like the dedicated volunteers I met at the Ashford shop, who are enabling the charity’s doctors and scientists to keep making huge advances in the battle against cancer. But the political drive to beat the disease must match the pace of progress in research - that’s why I’m backing the ‘Cross Cancer Out’ campaign to help ensure no-one’s life is cut short by cancer.”

According to Cancer Research UK, UK survival rates are still lagging behind the best in Europe and in England nearly half of all cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage, when they are harder to treat successfully.

Shop manager, Fiona Barnes, said: “We want everyone with cancer to receive the best treatment and to be diagnosed early enough for that treatment to make a difference.  These must be key priorities for the next Government if they are serious about saving more lives.  

“Thanks to the generosity of Cancer Research UK supporters, survival rates in the UK have doubled in the last 40 years. But there’s still so much more to do, so it’s great to have the backing of our local MP with raising awareness.

“We rely on the support of the local community in Ashford to help keep our shops stocked and are always in need of clothes, shoes, bags, homeware, books, CDs and DVDs. Each bag of donated items could be worth up to £25 for our life-saving research.”

 

For more information and ways to get involved in the campaign, visit cruk.org/crosscanceroutor join the conversation on twitter #CrossCancerOut.