Bladder and kidney cancers are in the top ten most common cancers in England, with 19,100 people diagnosed each year and 8,000 people dying from these diseases each year. Both cancers affect men and women, but they are more common in men.
Why is TUF supporting this campaign?
Our CEO, Louise, explains,
“We are very pleased to see Public Health England running this campaign. The Urology Foundation will always support campaigns that raise awareness of blood in pee, a symptom of a number of urological cancers.
“We know cancer is so much easier to treat when it’s caught early, which means checking for blood in pee can be a small, but life-saving, decision. Our goal is to lead the fight against urology disease and encouraging people to check for blood in their pee and to take action is an important step in that fight.”
Mr Philp Charlesworth is a TUF supporter and leading bladder cancer surgeon and he has this message,
“Surgeons have a lot of tools at our disposal to treat bladder cancer, but the sooner a patient can get to us, the more options we have to treat you, and the better the outcome will be for you.
“I cannot understate the importance of checking for blood in your pee before you flush; it could prove to be a false alarm, but that is not a risk worth taking. Even if you notice it just once, please go and see your GP right away.”
What should you do?
The most important thing that you can do, is to check the toilet before you flush. If you are flushing without looking, you could be flushing away a key sign of a potentially deadly disease. It could be a sign of something less serious, but it’s not worth taking the chance.
If you’d like to find out more about the campaign, you can visit the website. You can also learn more about bladder and kidney cancer on our urology health pages.
If you are concerned that you’ve seen a symptom of bladder or kidney cancer, go and see your GP straight away.
