March of the Mods is currently raising money and awareness for Teenage Cancer Trust, and these are some of the reasons why.

Some Facts & Statistics:

• Every day in the UK, six young people aged 13 to 24 are told they
have cancer. That’s about 2,100 young people a year.

• Cancer is the number one cause of non-accidental death in young
adults in the UK.

• One in 312 males and one in 361 females will get cancer before
they are 20.

• Boys up to the age of 15 have a one in 450 chance of developing
cancer, rising to one in 208 by the time they reach 24.
Girls up to the age of 15 have a one in 517 chance of developing
cancer, rising to one in 239 by the time they reach 24.

• Incidence rates are now higher in 13 to 24 year-olds than in
children, yet survival rates for this age group have not improved
as much.

• In England, five year survival stats for teenage and young adults
(TYA) are approximately 69% for males and 73% for females.
However due to the spectrum of tumours arising in teenagers and
young adults this varies from 89% for male germ cell tumours
(e.g. testicular), to 42% for males with Leukaemia and 46% for
bone sarcoma.

• Young people get some of the most aggressive cancers. But because
only 0.6% of all cancers occur in young people, they are often
misdiagnosed initially. This decreases their chances of survival
and can mean they are excluded from clinical trials.

• 61% of young people with cancer felt their diagnosis could have
been made quicker. 21% of young patients reported that their GP’s
did not refer them to a specialist at all, despite almost 59%
presenting at least two of the most common cancer symptoms: pain,
lump/swelling, tiredness, headache or drastic weight loss.

For more information regarding Teenage Cancer Trust please click on their logo on this page.