Urgent Need to Boost Cancer Care for People with Learning Disabilities

According to a new report, there is an urgent need to improve cancer detection and care for people with learning disabilities. The lead author, Dr. Oliver Kennedy from The University of Manchester and The Christie, explains that while we already know this population faces poorer health outcomes, the burden of cancer remains poorly understood.

Principal Investigator Prof. Darren Ashcroft adds that people with learning disabilities "frequently encounter barriers to healthcare access, such as communication difficulties and diagnostic overshadowing." This means clinicians may attribute new symptoms to an existing diagnosis, leading to late cancer diagnoses.