'Blood in pee' campaign: Resources and tools
Learning and Development Tools
Visit the CRUK learning and development tools page for further information, resources and tools.
This page features resources and tools for the fourth national 'blood in pee' campaign in England. You will find briefings and other additional materials for the 2018 campaign, all designed for healthcare professionals and community based partners.
A range of additional Be Clear on Cancer materials have been developed for the 'blood in pee' campaign, including symptom cards, leaflets and briefing sheets:
‘Blood in pee’ campaign overview briefing sheet
All of these resources and more including braille and carers leaflets, are available to order for free from the Campaign Resource Centre
You can order or download free copies of leaflets, posters and other collateral through the Campaign Resource Centre (CRC) (link is external) or by calling Orderline on: 0300 123 1002.
You can sign up(link is external) to receive campaign updates by subscribing to the Be Clear on Cancer mailing list.
The public-facing leaflet for the campaign gives information on the symptoms of bladder and kidney cancer, as well as how to reduce the risk of developing these cancers.
Download the public-facing leaflet
Accessible formats:
Download an easy-read version of the campaign leaflet
Download a large print version of the campaign leaflet
Order a British Sign Language (BSL) version of the campaign leaflet here
Download an audio version of the campaign leaflet
The public-facing website for the 'blood in pee' campaign is NHS Choices. Several other websites dedicated to Be Clear on Cancer have been created on www.nhs.uk/be-clear-on-cancer.
Watch the 'blood in pee' campaign TV advert's, refresh your memory of what your patients will be seeing and hearing during the campaign period.
View Male advert:
View Female advert:
The Department of Health published 'Direct access to diagnostic tests for cancer: best practice referral pathways for general practitioners'. The guidance aims to help GPs in determining which patients would be suitable for direct referral to local services providing the diagnostic tests.
It deals specifically with the circumstances and symptoms that may warrant such referrals and is aimed at health care professionals across primary and secondary care and those who both provide and commission services.
A toolkit developed by Lancashire & South Cumbria Cancer Network. It’s free to access and has a dedicated section on bladder cancer.
You can order or download a leaflet that explains Urgent Referrals from Cancer Research UK. These can be used to help patients who have been urgently referred with suspected cancer.
If you are a pharmacist or a member of the pharmacy team and your customer/patient is complaining of the key symptoms or is using an over the counter (OTC) medicine connected to the key symptom of blood in their pee, you can ask some key questions. These include how long they’ve been suffering the symptoms or using the OTC medicine and whether they have spoken to their GP. We know that people delay going to see their GP for a variety of reasons. They might be embarrassed, not realise their symptoms are serious or worry about wasting their GP’s time.
Be confident and where relevant, give customers permission to visit their GP. If you feel comfortable tell the customer to mention that their pharmacist sent them. It may be the push they need to get themselves checked out.
If you are a pharmacy counter assistant or member of the pharmacy team, be confident and follow your normal protocol. If you are concerned about a customer and feel uncomfortable talking about cancer, ask your pharmacist to speak to them or, if that isn’t possible, encourage the customer to go to see their GP and get their symptoms checked out. The chances are it’s nothing to worry about, but if it is cancer, it’s better for it to be detected early.
One source of support that can help you with raising the subject of cancer with patients is the British Oncology Pharmacy Association’s E-learning Centre. The centre has training for pharmacists and pharmacy team members about raising awareness of cancer in a pharmacy setting. This is free to access once you have registered on the website.
Public Health England's Urological Cancer Hub provides data and intelligence on urological cancers in England. It is aimed at a wide range of professionals working in the field, including NHS providers, commissioners, Strategic Clinical Networks, charities, urologists and other clinicians.
The hub features a range of resources, including Urological Cancer Profiles, fact sheets, and information for patients and carers.
View Public Health England's Urological Cancer Hub.
Below are additional resources which you may find useful. This is not an exhaustive list, but there are a few papers/links that outline various findings for bladder and kidney cancer. These have been used in the development of the campaign and you may wish to view the full resources yourself.
- For more information about the risk of urinary tract cancer in patients presenting in primary care with symptoms that may indicate bladder or renal cancer, view: The association between symptoms and bladder or renal tract cancer in primary care: a systematic review.
- For more information about the variation in the number of pre-referral consultations patients with different cancers and socio-demographic characteristics have, view: Variation in number of general practitioner consultations before hospital referral for cancer: findings from the 2010 National Cancer Patient Experience Survey in England.
- If you would like more information on routes to diagnosis, view Public Health England's key incidence and survival statistics. This includes updated data for 2006-2013 on cancers diagnosed by emergency routes.
Source cancer statistics for your practice or local area using the following tools:
View Cancer Research UK local cancer stats. Find and compare statistical information and intelligence about cancer in areas across the UK. This tool now includes CCG level data for cancer incidence and mortality. You will also find information on early diagnosis, screening and smoking.
View Public Health England's GP Practice Profiles. Source information about key indicators relating to cancer services for most GP practices in England and aims to help GP practices consider which services they offer to their patients.
View Urological Cancer Profiles. Find and compare incidence and mortality rates for major urological cancers, survival, and influencing factors, such as deprivation, with other areas in England
Be Clear on Cancer statement
Be Clear on Cancer was a cancer awareness campaign led by Public Health England, working in partnership with the Department of Health and NHS England. This page contains links to documents that we hope you find useful. Please note however that the views or opinions expressed within those links are not necessarily those of Cancer Research UK.
Last reviewed
Local cancer statistics
Use Local Cancer Statistics to find and compare statistical information and intelligence about cancer in areas across the UK. Data covers healthcare areas, consitituencies, local authorities and postcode.