According to the London King’s College LeDeR 2022 report, 42% of all deaths in people with a learning disability were deemed to be avoidable, with 15.7% of these deaths caused by cancer. Ansar Projects were looking for accessible resources to help people with a learning disability learn about cancer and check themselves for lumps and other early warning signs, but there didn’t seem to be anything around. They joined up with CoppaFeel! breast cancer charity and the testicular cancer charity Orchid plug that gap .
Ansar Projects, CoppaFeel!, and Orchid came together to create the ‘Know Your Body’ resources. These resources were designed to help people with a learning disability know their bodies better and to know what to do if they notice any differences within their bodies. They are freely available on the Thera website and since launching in 2022 over 4500 people have visited the Know Your Body pages and the resources have been downloaded nearly 2900 times.
Christine Harvey, Lead Director of Ansar Projects said:
Our hope is that these tools will be used in a variety of settings and be an aid to anyone with a learning disability, their families or support staff in raising awareness of the importance of checking yourself regularly and to empower people in getting to know their bodies.
In recognition of the importance of the resources, the project was shortlisted as a finalist in the Breaking Down Barriers award at the 2023 National Learning Disability and Autism Awards, placing highly commended in its category and proving just how influential this type of resource can be to supporting people with a learning disability to get to know and understand their bodies.