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Blood Cancer Awareness Month 2025

Blood Cancer Awareness Ribbon

This September CTM UHB is marking Blood Cancer Awareness Month. This month aims to raise the profile of the fifth most common cancer in the UK. Every year, over 40,000 people are diagnosed with a form of blood cancer in the UK, making it a significant health concern for our community.

What are blood cancers?
Unlike solid tumour cancers, blood cancer affects the way our blood cells are produced and how they function.

Blood cell are made in the bone marrow. There are three types of blood cells, red blood cell, white blood cells and platelets.

There are over 100 different types of blood cancers, but they are typical grouped into three main categories:

Leukaemia: A cancer found in the blood and bone marrow characterised by the rapid production of abnormal white blood cells. The leukaemia cell cannot fight infection and crown out health blood cells.

Lymphoma: This cancer targets the lymphatic system, which is a key part or our immune system. It involved the growth of abnormal lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell) and often causes swelling in the lymph node.

Myeloma: A cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood that is responsible for making antibodies to fight infection. Myeloma cell prevent the normal production of antibodies, weakening the immune system.

Signs and symptoms to look out for
The symptoms of blood cancer can often be vague and easily mistaken for other condition, which is why awareness is so crucial, they include:

  • Fatigue: Persistent and unexplained tiredness that doesn’t improve with rest.
  • Unexplained bruising or bleeding: Bruising easily, nosebleeds, bleeding gums or a rash of tiny red spots (petechiae).
  • Frequent or repeated infection: Getting sick more often than usually, or infection that take a long time to clear up.
  • Unexplained weight loss: losing weight without trying to.
  • Swollen lymph node: Lump in the next, armpit or groin
  • Drenching night sweats
  • Bone pain

If anyone is worried about symptoms, they should seek advice from their GP.

Service for people with blood cancer in Cwm Taf Morgannwg region
In CTM UHB all blood cancers are looked after by the Haematology department. Patients are diagnosed and treated in the Health Board.

In the new Haematology day unit in Prince Charles Hospital, our specially trained Haematology nurses administer chemotherapy and other systemic anticancer therapies (SACT). The nurses provide a friendly and welcoming atmosphere to put patient at ease. The day unit operate Monday to Friday. We also have nurses led treatment areas in Royal Glamorgan hospital.

Haematology offers multiple outpatient clinics which are held in different sites across the Health Board. The team offers Haematology consultant clinics, nurse led clinics and pharmacy led clinics.

Haematology Pop-up stands
The Haematology Advance clinical practitioner and nurses will be hosting a series of pop-up stands during Blood Cancer awareness Month, speaking to staff and patients, sharing information about signs, symptoms and treatment of blood cancers. With information from charities that support people with blood cancers.

The team will be hosting stands at:

  • Royal Glamorgan Hospital, Main Entrance, Thursday 11 September (2pm - 4pm)
  • Royal Glamorgan Hospital, Canteen, Tuesday 23 September (2pm - 4pm)
  • Prince Charles Hospital, Outpatients Department, Wednesday 24 September (9am)

You can find out more about Blood Cancers here:

11/09/2025