For anyone, a cancer diagnosis can leave you feeling confused, isolated and powerless. Being able to arm yourself with information can be empowering – it’s one thing you can do to help yourself feel a little more in control. It can help you understand what’s happening and what happens next. It gives you the knowledge to make decisions about your treatment. It can give confidence, hope and support. But what happens if you’re diagnosed with cancer, and you don’t speak or read English well?
Millions of people across the UK do not have English as their first language, and this can be a significant barrier when it comes to cancer care. People may not fully understand their diagnosis, their treatment options, how to cope with side effects or where to get further support. On top of this, we know that awareness of cancer warning signs and uptake of cancer screening is lower in people from black and minority ethnic groups. There are measures in place to help non-English speakers, for example hospitals should be able to provide an interpreter where necessary, but clearly these people are not getting the same experience as those who speak English fluently. They may feel less supported and leave with less understanding of their situation.
Providing high-quality information in people’s own languages is one way Macmillan hopes to help. That’s why we’ve recently expanded our range of translated cancer information.
We’d like to ask you to help us spread the word and tell people about these publications – just share the link
macmillan.org.uk/cancerinformation/otherformats/foreign.aspx
The range now includes 8 symptom awareness flyers covering common cancer types, and 11 fact sheets covering common cancers, treatments and aspects of coping with cancer and getting support. There is information in:
You can see all of our translated cancer information on our website.
And you can order the flyers for free from be.Macmillan.
Please share our translated information with anyone you think may find it helpful! We hope these products will mean that more people are better informed and supported through their cancer experience. If you have any questions or comments about Macmillan’s translations, please contact Abi on ahowse@macmillan.org.uk
For people who don’t speak English as a first language, other formats can also be useful, like audio and video. We produce information in various different formats. Take a look at our web page macmillan.org.uk/otherformats
References
Macmillan Cancer Support. The rich picture on people with cancer from BME groups. 2014.
