A team of local volunteers in Harrow has helped transform the way people talk about cancer – especially among men – following King Charles’ public battle with prostate cancer.
Led by Oky Lee-Morris from Voluntary Action Harrow, the project has seen a big increase in the number of men speaking up and learning how to spot early signs of the disease.
The scheme, which is funded by Macmillan Cancer Care, trained 38 people as ‘Cancer Community Champions’ to have conversations with people in Harrow’s most at-risk communities about cancer prevention, early diagnosis, and what care is available.
Oky said, “I’ve noticed a dramatic change; a lot of the time people from the most at-risk communities don’t want to hear the ‘cancer’ word, but the Cancer Community Champion volunteers are from those communities, and can start conversations gently, by asking ‘how are you?’ in their own language.
“At the same time, King Charles and the Royal Family raised the profile, which made conversations so much easier. Before King Charles’ diagnosis only about 14% of the people we were speaking to were men – by the end of 2024 it was up to 36% – an increase of over 250%. When the news broke about King Charles, men were actually approaching us to ask about prostate cancer!”
One of the volunteers, Manohar Ganshani, said the information they are sharing is vital and could help save lives.
“When I started as a Cancer Community Champion, 90% of the people that I engaged with had little or no awareness of cancer symptoms, available care, or the importance of screening.”
The 38 Cancer Community Champions speak 23 different languages between them, and around half of them are from Asian backgrounds – communities where cancer is still rarely spoken about.
Some people even believe that saying the word ‘cancer’ could bring on the disease. That’s why the volunteers are so important, helping to gently open conversations, break myths, and share reliable information in a way that feels safe and familiar.
Oky added, “Because royals were affected, people began to realise that cancer isn’t something that you can hide from, even with wealth – everyone is at risk, including the King.”
For more information about cancer and local health support, visit: healthyharrow.org.uk/publichealth
Chris Mitchell is the founder and editor of Harrow Online, Harrow’s leading local news platform.
He launched Harrow Online in 2010 as a Facebook page sharing local news and information. Since then, it has grown into a trusted source for breaking news, crime, council decisions, planning, transport, business and community stories across the borough.
Harrow Online reaches hundreds of thousands of readers each month and has a social media audience of more than 200,000 followers.
For news tips, press releases or enquiries, contact Chris at info@harrowonline.org.
