Cancer fight hampered by UK stiff upper lip culture

They found that one in six Britons aged 50 and over expressed embarrassment at the prospect of meeting their doctor and talking about bowels, breasts and sexual organs. And as many as one in three thought they would be wasting their doctor’s time.

Britain is known as the country of the stiff upper lip – be brave, don’t cry, take it on the chin! Analysts say this could be the reason why the UK has a much worse cancer survival rate than other developed countries.
Researchers from two London universities surveyed 20,000 adults in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the UK.

They found that one in six Britons aged 50 and over expressed embarrassment at the prospect of meeting their doctor and talking about bowels, breasts and sexual organs. And as many as one in three thought they would be wasting their doctor’s time.

These figures were significantly higher than those of the other five nations and experts pointed out that delays in checking physical problems resulted in later cancer diagnosis and reduced chances of cure.
A league table of 19 European countries, including the poorer Eastern nations, placed Britain at a lowly 16th spot, even though access to skilled medical staff and cutting-edge treatment is widely available.
Estimates say that the lives of more than 5,000 cancer patients could be saved each year in England alone if the country matched the best European survival rates.

Lead researcher Dr Lindsay Forbes said, “This is a real UK phenomenon. UK people really stood out in our study. As a nation we are much more embarrassed about going to the doctor or worried that we will take up a doctor’s time.

“We don’t know why British people feel like that. It may be we are more stoic and have a wartime mentality. Older people in particular can get a problem and wait for weeks or months before going to see their GP.”
Reacting to the British Medical Journal account of the research, a German blogger said he told a fellow German doctor who was going to England: “If somebody admits that they are feeling poorly, prepare for resuscitation!”

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Naomi Oni, 20, stepped off a bus in Dagenham, East London. Feeling that someone was close behind her, she turned and glimpsed a figure in a burka, the features covered. “Suddenly, I felt a splash on my face,” Naomi said. “It burned and I ran home screaming ‘Acid, acid, acid.’ I was hysterical. My godmother, who is a pharmacist, and my mother splashed water on my face until the ambulance came.”

After initial treatment in hospital, Naomi looked into a mirror. “When I saw my face, I did not want to live any more. It just wasn’t me. I’ll never be the same again. I kept thinking, Who would do that? Who could do that? Why would anyone do that?”

Naomi works at a lingerie store, has a regular boyfriend and cares for her part-disabled mother and she can think of nothing in her life that might have motivated such an action. With police inquiries bearing no fruit, she released photos of herself before the attack – a pretty, smiling, brown-skinned girl, and after – seriously scarred on face, ear and shoulders. And she gave interviews to BBC television displaying her hideous injuries in the hope that a witness might come forward.

Naomi faces months or years of skin grafts and plastic surgery and doctors say she will still be left with severe scarring. But choking back tears, she said, “I can see and I can hear, I can speak and eat and drink and I believe God has a plan for my life.”

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Here are two stories. The first one is true.
Thurston Poole and Billy Ray Wallis were returning home to Des Arc, Arkansas after a frog-catching trip when their truck headlights malfunctioned. The fuse had burned out and they had no spares. Wallis noticed that the .22 calibre bullets from his pistol fitted the fuse box perfectly, so he slipped one into place and the headlights were fine again.

After 20 more miles, however, the bullet had overheated; it discharged and hit Poole in the testicles. The truck crashed and Wallis got a broken shoulder. Doctors said Poole would live but his crown jewels would not in future operate as intended.

When told of the accident, Poole’s wife Virginia, asked, “What happened to the frogs?”

Here is the second story, also about hunting … kind of.
An atheist was in the woods when he heard a rustling sound behind him. A 7-foot grizzly bear was about to charge.
“Oh my God,” he called, fleeing for his life, whereupon a voice from above boomed, “You denied my existence all your life, do you expect me to help you now?”

Said the atheist, “I agree that would be hypocritical, but could you ask the bear to behave as a Christian?”
God assented and the atheist gratefully turned his head.
The bear was on its knees, head bowed, paws together. Devoutly, it prayed: “For what I am about to receive, may the Lord make me truly thankful. Amen.”

Mr Loughran is a UK-based correspondent.
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