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3. Cancer Leaflets. Below will be found the leaflet in use
locally. To this should be added that food should never be taken with
unwashed hands, especially of course where a cancer patient is being
nursed. Vegetables, if eaten raw, should be thoroughly cleansed, first
by scrubbing. Dressings from patients should be burned and the
dejecta treated with a strong disinfectant solution.
Metropolitan Borough of Deptford.
CANCER.
Special Notice to the Public.
The following leaflet is issued because so many persons die from Cancer whose lives
could be saved if they acted upon the advice here offered.
The importance of this subject to the public is shewn by the fact that of all deaths
of persons over 40 years of age, one in NINE IS FROM CANCER.
Issued by the Public Health Department, Deptford
CANCER.
It is vitally important that the following facts about Cancer should be known.
It is now an established fact that of the number of persons who die
each year from Cancer many could have been cured if they had applied
fearlier for medical advice. On questioning patients as to why they do
not apply to a doctor earlier, the reason almost invariably given is that,
as the early symptoms were unaccompanied by pain, it was thought that
nothing serious was the matter.
In order, therefore, to call the attention of the public to the significance
of certain symptoms and to the vital importance of acting
promptly on the occurrence of these, it has been decided to make the
following facts public.
Practically the only cure for Cancer at present known is its early
and complete removal. Its destruction by X Rays or Radium, though
hopeful, is still in the experimental stage. Cancer, if removed early
enough, has been proved conclusively to be a curable disease. If
neglected, and not dealt with in its earliest stages, it is almost invariably
fatal. The paramount importance of its early recognition and early
removal is therefore evident. For this purpose the assistance both of
the public and the medical profession is requisite; and a grave
responsibility rests on both. It is only by their mutual co-operation
that the ravages of this terrible disease can be lessened. The following
information is of vital importance to the public. It is no exaggeration to
say that, if acted upon, the result would be the saving annually of many
lives which at present are sacrificed.
1. Cancer, in its early stage, may give rise to no pain or feeling of
ill-health.
2. Nevertheless, in the commonest situations, the symptoms of
Cancer in its early stage are generally manifest.