More than a million

On behalf of Macmillan Cancer Support, Ipsos has conducted a survey of people in the UK who look after someone with cancer. This study is intended to fill a gap in knowledge about cancer carers: how many there are, the support they give and the effect this has upon them.

The study indicates that approximately 2.1% of the UK population aged 15+ are carers for someone with cancer (approximately 1.1 million people). This includes people who give support for at least 5 hours a week. It also includes those who give 1-4 hours of support each week and who say this affects their life in some way

Key themes covered by the report include:

• The types of support carers give to someone with cancer.
• The amount of care they give and the effect it has on them.
• Details about those they support (e.g. age, gender, cancer type, current condition)
• The support they receive as carers and the gaps in this support
• Their contact, if any, with Macmillan Cancer Support.

Key findings

Less than half of carers interviewed (43%) actually consider themselves to be a ‘carer’. For some of them, this term has professional connotations with which they do not identify.

Half of carers interviewed (49%) receive no support, either formal or informal, to help them with the care they provide. Cancer carers provide a wide range of support to those they care for, including emotional support, administering medicine, cooking and cleaning and personal care. Similar numbers of carers (47%) say they currently do not receive help or support that would be useful to them. Most often, this is advice or guidance on how to provide care, information on the support that is available to carers and emotional support.

As a result of the care they give, nearly half of carers surveyed (46%) suffer with mental health problems such as stress, anxiety and depression, and one in eight (13%) say it causes physical health problems such as sleep and digestive problems. One in seven (15%) carers report a financial effect such as the need to leave work or expenditure on things like travel to hospital.

Methodology

Interviews with carers were conducted through the Ipsos Capibus Survey. This is the syndicated face-to-face survey which Ipsos undertakes each week with 2,000 adults aged 15+ in Great Britain. A parallel survey is conducted in Northern Ireland each week with 420 people aged 15+.

Respondents were initially asked if they had recently provided any help and support to someone with cancer. If they had, they were then asked follow-up questions to determine how much care they gave and the effect on their lives. If they met the agreed definition of a carer, they then took part in the wider survey on their experiences and needs as a carer.

Ipsos interviewed a total of 18,449 people aged 15+ in the UK between 20 May and 25 August 2011. In total, 386 met the definition of a current carer for someone with cancer. Results have been weighted to be representative of the UK adult population. Ipsos later conducted a series of qualitative depth interviews with participants in the survey who had agreed to take part in further research.