The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) is encouraging pharmacy teams to support the latest phase of Public Health England’s ‘Be Clear on Cancer’ campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the symptoms of lung cancer, lung disease and heart disease.

Running until 16 October and supported by various celebrities including Dr Hilary Jones, the campaign urges anyone with a persistent cough or breathlessness to visit their GP, as these could be signs of lung cancer, COPD or heart disease – three of the leading causes of death in England.

Sandra Gidley, chair of the RPS English Pharmacy Board, said: “It’s a good campaign. It’s something that pharmacy is ideally placed to do and it will hopefully help to save lives.”

She added: “We’ve always referred if someone has been coughing for three weeks or more, but this campaign adds breathlessness to the list of things to be aware of. It’s easy to dismiss things like this with age, when in fact it should be investigated.”