Spotting the early signs of cancer and taking action are key to surviving the disease - here's how to help the NHS to help you
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Michael trusted his instincts and went to his GP when he noticed his urine was occasionally pink-ish in colour
Spotting the signs of cancer early and taking action are the key to surviving the disease. But what should you be looking out for?
After finishing a rigorous workout at an outside gym on the beautiful Dorset coast on holiday one year, Michael Sloane treated himself to a nice coffee.
But when the accountant next went to the loo, he noticed his urine was the colour of rosé wine, rather than the norm.
'I thought that was a bit unusual, but perhaps I'd just overdone things on the outside gym,' says 68-year-old Michael, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.
'The next time I went to the toilet it looked perfectly normal, so I probably wouldn't have done anything about it but for the fact that it happened again about 10 days later.
'I thought, something isn't right here, so I booked an appointment with my GP. She was very good, and ordered the various tests I needed – blood and urine tests.'
Michael, who was 58 at the time, was checked for prostate cancer and also had a flexible cystoscopy, where a camera is inserted into the bladder.
'They found a tumour there,' he says. 'That was a shock. The different coloured wee was the only symptom.'
Michael had surgery to remove the mass and has since had two more operations to remove new tumours that have been detected in regular follow-ups over the past decade. But the outcome may have been very different if he hadn't trusted his instinct that something was wrong all those years ago.
You know best
Cancer survival rates have doubled over the past 40 years, with half of us now expected to live for at least a decade after diagnosis
This is because key to surviving cancer is an early diagnosis and prompt treatment of the disease. And you're best placed to know if something is out of the ordinary for you.
Of course, the thought of seeking treatment can be daunting. The idea that we might be seriously ill and need invasive treatment, often for months, is frightening so many of us put it off.
But we shouldn't. Because while the number of people being diagnosed with cancer in the UK is rising – nowadays, half of us will be in our lifetime – we are much more likely to survive. In fact, cancer survival rates have doubled over the past 40 years, with half of us now expected to live for at least a decade after diagnosis.
Professor Peter Johnson, NHS England's National Clinical Director for Cancer, explains: 'Cancer symptoms and early-warning signs can be very varied'
So it's important to take action and see your GP if you suspect something is wrong, because earlier diagnosis can save lives.
If they are concerned, they will refer you on for further tests. These are more likely to rule out cancer than confirm a diagnosis. If the news isn't good, they'll be by your side with the treatment you need.
Professor Peter Johnson, NHS England's National Clinical Director for Cancer, explains: 'Cancer symptoms and early-warning signs can be very varied, with some being less obvious than others.
'But what's important to know is what is normal for you, so that you can spot any changes. If you have any concerns or if something in your body doesn't feel quite right, you should contact your GP practice.
'It could be nothing, but diagnosing cancer earlier could save your life.'
Listen to your body
Gill first noticed unusual breathlessness before she discovered a lump in her groin
Knowing your own body is particularly important given that the symptoms of some cancers are so common that many people dismiss them as unimportant.
Signs of blood cancers such as lymphoma and leukaemia, for example, can simply be breathlessness or tiredness.
Gill Winsor, 64, first started noticing she was getting out of breath while running with her daughter three years ago.
'I put it down to getting older, and that I hadn't been going to the gym as much,' says the delivery driver from Essex.
Then came some seemingly unrelated niggles. 'The next thing was a long lump in my groin, which suddenly appeared and got bigger and bigger.'
Her GP first diagnosed an infection and then, when it didn't clear up with antibiotics, a hernia. But when a scan showed that a lymph node was enlarged and a blood test revealed that she was anaemic, Gill was sent to A&E.
'I'd also had ulcers in my nostrils that didn't clear up, and I had a raised vein under my eyebrow – when I caught it with a hairbrush, I suddenly had a black eye. By then, I was also lightheaded when I stood up and getting more breathless going up the stairs,' she says.
In A&E she had a bone marrow biopsy and the result was clear: Gill had acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).
'I didn't know what the symptoms of leukaemia were, so I didn't know that all these things were related,' she says.
'When I look back, the signs were there: feeling tired, joints aching and, just before I was diagnosed, I had a sharp pain in my lung, which I now know was an infection. The symptoms of AML include continual infections and night sweats.'
Within weeks, Gill had started treatment at St Bartholomew's Hospital, London, which included chemotherapy tablets and a stem cell transplant from a donor in the United States.
More than 41,000 people are diagnosed with blood cancers each year in the UK
'All the way through, I refused to dwell on my illness. It often seemed like a bit of a dream, because I didn't feel that ill. But if I'd have left it, I probably wouldn't be here now.
'I remember being a bit concerned when I couldn't run without getting short of breath, and just before I was diagnosed I had pinky-brown bruises up my arms. When you piece it together afterwards, it all makes sense.'
Gill is now fit and healthy. 'In 2022, I ran the London Marathon. I feel full of energy, but if I hadn't seen the doctor, it could have been so different,' she says.
Gill admits she knew nothing about blood cancer symptoms, even though it's the fifth most common type of cancer in the UK, with more than 41,000 people diagnosed each year.
Professor Johnson warns: 'Symptoms, such as breathlessness, night sweats or feeling tired but you're not sure why, can be quite common.
'But if something doesn't feel right for you, please contact your local GP practice. Finding cancer earlier saves lives.'
'I thought nothing of it - I was healthy and fit...'
Ali Abdul Rofe suffered with extreme tiredness and night sweats for a year before going to his GP
When Ali Abdul Rofe first started having night sweats and feeling tired, he dismissed his symptoms, putting them down to stress and weight gain.
'I was sleeping at odd times in the day because of constant fatigue,' says the 45-year-old businessman.
'The extreme night sweating continued during my sleep, and I was having to change my vests two or three times a night.
'I thought nothing of it and continued living as normal, because I was generally a healthy, fit person and almost never went to the GP.'
He suffered these symptoms for around a year, but in 2016 could no longer ignore them because the night sweats had become even worse. So he booked an appointment with his doctor.
'My GP immediately arranged for tests to investigate the issues. I was sent for blood tests and a chest X-ray,' says Ali, from east London.
At first, tuberculosis was diagnosed, but when it didn't improve with treatment, further tests discovered he had Hodgkin lymphoma.
'I had various treatments over the years, including a stem cell transplant in February 2022, which was successful. Now I'm working back to recovery without medication,' he says.
'I'd like to tell anyone who suspects anything unusual in their health to go and see their GP.
'It may not be anything serious, but it could be a sign of cancer, and finding it early makes it more treatable and could save your life.'
■ This article is part of a paid-for partnership with HM Government
