Geography

In our ED&I Strategy, when we talk about geography, we mean where people live and how this affects their blood cancer care, treatments, and survival.

Geography and blood cancer

Better outcomes are possible with more treatment options but where you live in the UK can limit what’s available. Accessing specialist care often means travelling away from home, which can be costly — financially and emotionally — especially if it means time off work or time away from loved ones.

Data from our UK Blood Cancer Action Plan found that in Wales, there are differences in blood cancer survival depending on whether people live in a rural, suburban or urban area.

The Action Plan also shows that approved blood cancer treatments are not always prescribed, and geography may play a role in this.

Additionally, there are over 20 CAR-T centres in the UK but only three of these are only three of these are in Wales and Scotland, and there is no CAR-T centre in Northern Ireland.

• We'll learn more about why blood cancer treatments and outcomes change depending on where people live.
• We’ll develop and trial tailored interventions as our knowledge base grows.
• We’ll influence policymakers to carry out and share more analysis on blood cancer survival based on geography.
• We’ll ensure more local decision makers hear our voice across the UK.
• We’ll look internally at the geographic spread of our Involvement Network and the researchers we support.

If you’ve faced barriers to diagnosis, treatment or support, or if your care has been exceptional, we’d love to hear from you. Join our Involvement Network to use your lived experience to support our projects and relevant work. Your insights will help make sure our strategy delivers real change for everyone affected by blood cancer.