World Cancer Day 4 February

Everyone in the UK is likely to feel the impact of cancer in their lifetime. That could be through facing a diagnosis themselves, or because a loved one or friend is affected.

World Cancer Day is an international day to raise awareness of cancer and to encourage its prevention, detection, and treatment. The theme for the years 2022-2024 is 'Close the Care Gap' that focuses on reducing the inequities that exist in accessing quality cancer services worldwide.

New modelling published in the report, Cancer in the UK: Overview 2023 shows that if current trends continue, cancer cases will rise from the 384,000 diagnosed each year now, to over half a million by 2040.

Living and working with cancer

Work is important for many people with cancer or caring for someone with cancer, for a number of reasons. Work provides an income, it provides social contact, it can help keep or bring back a sense of normality, routine and stability and it can help with recovery and lead to better health.

Employees with a cancer diagnosis are protected from discrimination at work by the Equality Act 2010 and employers have a responsibility to support their employees. Employers can make a huge difference to the working lives of people affected by cancer, from being compassionate and providing support in a working environment to making reasonable adjustments to the workplace or working practices to make it easier for the employee with cancer to work and help them stay in or return to work when they are ready and able (Employers | Macmillan Cancer Support). Typical examples may include flexible working times if people need time off for medical appointments, or longer sickness leave depending on treatment. Physical adjustments to an employee’s working environment may also be required. Additional voluntary measures might include subsidised travel costs, free workplace counselling and extended non-statutory leave (Cancer in the workplace: how responsible employers respond | Guardian sustainable business | The Guardian)

Many adjustments are free. If there is some cost, it is usually small. Grants from Access to Work schemes can cover some or all of the cost. Access to Work is a government scheme. It offers grants and advice to help employees with a disability or health condition stay in work. Visit Access to Work.

Macmillan at Work offers workplace training, guidance and resources including a free toolkit and webinars to help managers and HR professionals feel confident and equipped to support employees affected by cancer and also enable them to provide better workplace support for employees living with or affected by cancer. The toolkit includes e-learning modules, guidance notes, video training and a regular newsletter with case studies and information updates and Macmillan at Work also offer bespoke in-house training on how to best respond to the needs of employees with cancer. Find out more and sign up to Macmillan at Work.

Macmillan suggest some simple first steps to support an employee including:

• talk to your employee to understand their needs.
• provide training for managers.
• check your policies are up to date - including guidance about sickness absence, long‑term conditions, time off work and occupational health.
• educate employees.
• raise awareness of cancer.

This booklet on Managing cancer in the workplace, produced in partnership with The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD), was produced for managers, HR professionals and to help them support people affected by cancer in the workplace.

Raising awareness and showing your support

There are events happening all over the world, such as the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) 5k Challenge which encourages people from all walks of life to complete a 5km loop by running, cycling, swimming, trekking, or other methods and then the participants are encouraged to post their activities on social media, with the hashtags #WorldCancerDay and #CloseTheCareGap. Find out more about World Cancer Day and how you can support it by visiting the Official website of World Cancer Day by UICC | 4 February.

You can also show your support on World Cancer Day by wearing your Unity Band® and making a donation.

Join the World Cancer Day Call to Action on governments around the world to promote health equity, enhance cancer service accessibility, reduce disparities in cancer incidence and mortality, to finally close the care gap.

Lizzy Turek

Client Research Associate