Are you over 70 years old and have been affected by cancer?

Cancer Research UK have commissioned the University of Birmingham to conduct a study to understand more about patients’ access to cancer treatments in those over 70.

The researchers have worked in partnership with patient representatives to design a survey, which asks about personal experiences of decision-making - e.g. how much you knew about how decisions were made about your care.

If you are over 70 years old and have been affected by cancer, we want to hear about your experiences. The survey should take no more than 15 minutes to complete, and your feedback will be invaluable in helping to shape our recommendations to key decision-makers to ensure older people with cancer are able to access the best possible treatment for them.

How to get involved

The survey will be available until 25th August and is available here. If you would like more information, email involvement@cancer.org.uk

Thank you for taking the time to help with this.

  • Hi Renata.

    I have completed the form.

    Kind regards, Brian.

  • Thanks so much, Brian!

    Best wishes,

    Renata, Cancer Chat Moderator

     

  • Hi Renata I have completed the survey. Take care -Diane 

  • Done - though I found two of the questions slightly offensive, they seemed to be based on a premise that human beings aged over 55 have Mental Capacity issues when compared with those aged under 55. I am sure this was unintentional, but this was how the two questions came across to me. 
    "Older people", like any other age group, require accurate, unbiased, objective information - including potential side effects and average survival times with and without each treatment - in order to make informed decisions about their treatment.
    People with mental capacity issues, regardless of their age, may need such information to be presented in a more easily understood format - in line with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

     

  • Completed the survey but think the findings for over 70's will not be acurate as a lot of over 70's do not use the internet.  I am thinking of those a lot over 70.

  • Hi Davek and thank you for your feedback. I contacted the people responsible for the survey and they have taken your comments onboard. The purpose behind the survey is really for them to look at the experiences of people over 70 and so they have asked me to amend the post to reflect that. They are also going to make these changes to their web page and to other places where the survey is being promoted. They were very apologetic for any offence caused and completely understood the points you made.

    Thanks again for taking the time to comment :)

    Best wishes

    Sarah

  • Hi River

    That seems to be the general consensus that those very much over 70 aren't using the internet. In my experience this is not the case. My father in law 89 has used a computer for the last 35 years. Mother in law 86 has learned recently with the help of books from Age Concern and can now confidently do an online shop at Asda and buy and sell stuff on Ebay.  My work takes me to several retirement homes and I'd say in most rooms a laptop can be found, including one establishment where the owner tells me the average residents' age is 86. I was surprised at this. Kim

  • Kim,

    The assumption that everyone over the age of 55 (the original figure in the subject heading) fits into a certain stereotype was one of my concerns.

    My Dad is in his 80's and probably spends more time online than I do.  

    That said, whilst stereotypes do often have some basis in reality - they are a social construct which we all use instead of tking the time to discover what each individual we meet is actually like. The danger is when assumptions about stereotypes influence policy makers. Easy to assume that say, men's reluctance to talk to a GP explains a high number of diagnoses being made at Stage 4 rather than flawed NICE guidance to GPs about when to refer on for diagnostic services.   

    Cheers
    Dave