Prevention

The Long Term Plan for Cancer sets an ambition to reduce or eliminate preventable cancers before they appear.

The NHS will do this by finding more cancers before symptoms appear, increasing public awareness of risk factors and the early signs and symptoms of cancer, and increasing take up of screening programmes.

• Nearly 300,000 adults smoke and Southampton, Portsmouth, Havant, Rushmoor, Bournemouth and Poole have much higher smoking rates than average. People who work in manual labour jobs or who have sustained mental illness are also more likely to smoke.

Our cancer prevention work so far includes:

Communities Against Cancer

Our Communities Against Cancer programme helps people to reduce their risk of cancer, be aware of the signs and symptoms of cancer, and seek help at an earlier stage. Through our partner, Action Hampshire, we work with local community groups to train Cancer Champions – people who are known and trusted in their local community – who others can talk to about cancer.

We work with Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, black and minority ethnic group communities, the learning disability and autistic community and people from more deprived communities, to help reduce health inequalities.

Learn more about Communities Against Cancer.

National extension for the HPV screening programme

From September 2019 the national HPV screening programme was extended to boys in school year 8, taking an important step forward in our efforts to prevent cancer.