University News Last updated 17 October 2012
In support of Breast Cancer Awareness month, staff from Birmingham City University are taking to the road in a bid to promote health and wellbeing to the city’s youngsters.
Experts from the University’s Faculty of Health will visit schools and colleges throughout the region this October, aiming to clarify the facts surrounding cancer.
This will be the first road show of its kind that the Faculty, based in Edgbaston, has run. The educational sessions will provide advice on what cancer is, the signs and symptoms, dispelling the myths and ways to reduce the risks. There will be a number of interactive activities for students to get involved with, including techniques for self-examination using prosthetics, information on the effects of smoking and skin cancer models showing what different skin cancers look and feel like.
Alison Simons, Lecturer in Haematology and Cancer Care at Birmingham City University, said: “I hope that the students will take away with them the message that although cancer is serious, there is a lot they can do to help reduce the risks of developing it, and by spotting things early the outcomes can be improved.
“Dispelling the myths surrounding cancer, such as those reported in newspapers and magazines that cancer is a death sentence and the treatments are horrendous is important for young people. At their age they think they are invincible and immortal. By making changes in their lifestyle now they can help their future health. By having an understanding of what to look out for, the treatment options and prognosis of cancer may alleviate fears in seeking medical help with any health worries they may have, and that not all lumps and bumps mean they have got cancer.”
The Faculty hopes that this will be the first of many health road shows throughout the city.