A leading medic is calling for increased awareness among both GPs and the public of the “quiet cancer” that killed Steve Jobs and Aretha Franklin.
Professor Martyn Caplin is one of Britain’s top experts in neuroendocrine tumours (NETs), a form of cancer that can occur in many parts of the body.
Of the 3,000 to 4,000 people diagnosed in the UK each year, each has waited for an average of three to seven years.
By this time almost 60 per cent of patients are at an advanced stage of the disease, according to the NET Patient Foundation. Symptoms include diarrhoea, looking sunburned, extreme fatigue and weight loss.
Actress Olivia Williams recently spoke about her four-year struggle to be diagnosed with an NET on the pancreas. Apple CEO Jobs and singer Franklin both died following battles with pancreatic NETs.
Professor Caplin said: “The frustration has been that it does not get recognised in its own right. It is called ‘the quiet cancer’ because it often grows quietly and is not picked up until late.”
He said patients are often told they have IBS or that they are menopausal. The NPF is running a campaign to increase knowledge of NETs among medics.
Professor Caplin is seeking donations to help fund his joint research team from UCL and the Royal Free Hospital. It is doing trials and lab work, validating a blood test that could detect NETs early.
Graduate intern William Stein, 22, will run four marathons in four weeks, in Paris, Thessaloniki, Vienna and London, for the fund. His mother, Philippa, 54, was diagnosed in 2007.
To donate, visit tinyurl.com/steinnets
