Body Checks

Please tick and complete the following:

Females

Do you regularly perform breast self examination? Yes No

Do you have regular cervical smears? Yes No

If you are over 50 years, do you have regular mammograms? Yes No

Males

Do you regularly perform testicular self examinations? Yes No

If you are over 40 years, are you aware of the signs and symptoms of prostate problems? Yes No

Sun Care

How common is skin cancer?

There are two main types of skin cancer: malignant melanoma which is less common but more serious: and non-melanoma skin cancer which is very common but not so serious.

Around 15,400 people are diagnosed with melanoma in the UK each year. Melanoma is the 5th most common cancer in the UK.

How many people survive cancer?

Malignant melanoma survival rates have been improving for the last twenty five years and are now amongst the highest for any cancer. Survival rates show that 81% of men and 90% of women survive the disease for at least five years after diagnosis.

Reference skin cancer; Cancer research UK. http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/cancerstats

Sleep

We don’t usually need to think very much as sleep is just a part of life’s routine. Even so, most of us sometimes find that we can’t sleep properly; we call this insomnia. It’s usually just for a short time, perhaps when we’re worried or excited.

When things settle down, we start sleeping properly again. If you can’t sleep properly, it can be a real problem - we need sleep to keep healthy.

Sleep Apnoea (interrupted sleep)

You snore loudly and stop breathing for short periods during the night. This happens because the upper part of your airway closes. Every time you stop breathing, you wake suddenly and your body or arms and legs may jerk.

You stay awake just for a short time, then fall off to sleep again. This will happen several times during the night. You may have a dry mouth and a headache when you wake up the morning. You feel tired in the day and may have an irresistible urge to go to sleep.

You are more likely to get sleep apnoea if you are Older Overweight

A smoker

A heavy drinker

Preventing melanoma.

Tips for staying safe in the sun:

Applying high factor sunscreen and reapply frequently

Avoid sunbathing between 11:00 hours & 15:00 hours

Gradually build up the time you spend in the sun

It is possible to develop sunburn under the following conditions: in the shade, when it is cloudy and while swimming

Remove yourself from the sun at the first sign of burning

Always drink plenty of water

Always protect your eyes from the sun, when choosing sunglasses look for one of the following: The CE Mark, and British standard (BS EN 1836: 1997), UV 400 Label, a statement that the sunglasses offer 100% UV protection.