Friends of Caswell Thompson (FOCT) is an organisation set up for, and dedicated to, raising awareness about prostate cancer in the BAME communities in Bristol and surrounding towns and villages through a range of activities, with a particular focus on reaching black men, who have an incident rate of 1 in 4. The general population is 1 in 8.
The company is named after our late and dear friend Caswell Thompson, who, sadly, succumbed to the disease at the age of sixty-one in 2016. It was his dying wish for us to continue raising awareness in the community; that promise was made. And by organising and running regular prostate cancer awareness open events for the whole community, in collaboration with Health Professionals and specialist clinicians, Friends of Caswell Thompson honours that commitment.
Our events will:
a) enable distribution of educational material produced by Prostate Cancer UK and others;
b) provide the setting for direct contact between specialist clinicians and the community;
c) provide the opportunity to highlight other conditions related to prostate cancer;
d) empower men to manage their own health;
e) provide a forum for discussion; and
f) bring black, Asian and minority ethnic people’s healthcare to the fore.
We also hope that social cohesion and a trusted community group providing a “go to” for BAME men and their families for support and information will be an added community benefit.