Six-year study to understand why marginalised groups struggle to access cancer treatment

People with learning disabilities, those experiencing severe mental illness and people living in poverty are the focus of a series of studies from the University of Surrey to identify what prevents marginalised groups from receiving timely cancer care.

Dr Robert Kerrison has been awarded a Cancer Research UK Fellowship worth more than £700,000 to research and better understand the experiences that keep patients away from potentially life-saving care. Dr Kerrison’s Fellowship will run until 2031 and comprises three interconnected studies.

The first study will identify treatment inequalities experienced by people from marginalised groups, mapping where gaps appear across different cancer types. The second explores whether poor experiences during care – such as not feeling treated with dignity and respect – might explain why some patients disengage from treatment. The third involves in-depth interviews with people from marginalised communities who are currently receiving cancer treatment, creating space for patients to describe the challenges they face in their own words.

Cancer is a devastating disease, but we know that early detection and prompt treatment can make an enormous difference. The problem is that for many marginalised groups, accessing timely treatment can be an uphill struggle. We see disparities across the board – people with learning disabilities, those experiencing severe mental illness, people living in poverty. They face barriers that the rest of us might never encounter, and those barriers can be the difference between treatment working or failing.

Our project is all about understanding what those barriers actually are – not what we assume they are – so we can start the important work of dismantling them. Dr Robert Kerrison, Associate Professor and Co-Lead for Cancer Care

Dr Kerrison is also leading a project funded by Breast Cancer Now that examines a different dimension of inequality – whether patients can sustain treatment over time. While the Cancer Research UK Fellowship investigates whether people receive initial treatment and how quickly they access care, the Breast Cancer Now research focuses specifically on breast cancer treatment adherence – whether patients are able to continue with prescribed treatment regimens over months and years.

Starting treatment is only half the battle. For many marginalised groups, the practical, financial and social barriers don't disappear once treatment begins – they accumulate. Understanding what makes it difficult for people to stay on treatment over months and years is essential if we want to improve breast cancer outcomes for everyone. Dr Kerrison commented on the Breast Cancer Now project

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Dr Robert Kerrison

Associate Professor and Co-Lead for Cancer Care

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