At Equipsme, we don’t cover the treatment of cancer once it has been diagnosed. Excluding it is part of our commitment to responsible and sustainable pricing, aiming to help more businesses cover more of their workforce for the long term.
Instead, we focus on early diagnosis.
We know that the quicker someone gets answers about possible cancer symptoms, the quicker they can choose the right path forwards.
Private cancer diagnosis is already available on plan levels 3, 2 and 1 - meaning that your people can access private specialist consultations and tests up to the point of a cancer diagnosis (subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions of the plan, such as for pre-existing and/or chronic/long term conditions or symptoms).
We also have specialised Pathways for three common cancers through AXA Health. These aim to get people with symptoms of breast, skin or prostate cancer through to specialist support even faster. Cancer pathways are for members aged over 18, and those aged over 40 for the prostate cancer pathway.
These pathways mean Equipsme members can often access diagnosis services through AXA Health, without the need for a GP referral. The breast, skin and prostate cancer diagnostic screenings are provided by Check4Cancer, a reliable and trusted provider of early cancer detection in the UK.
Cancer Pathways
1. Breast Cancer Pathway
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, accounting for 15% 1 of all new cancer cases. Symptoms 2 can include things like a lump or swelling in the breast, chest or armpit, and changes in the breast or nipple like shape, texture and size.
The good news is that if caught at its earliest stage (stage 1), nearly 100% 3 of women survive their breast cancer for five years or more. So, getting a fast diagnosis really is crucial – and that’s where the breast cancer pathway can help.
Members can access the pathway by logging into their member portal, clicking on the Diagnosis icon, and contacting AXA Health with their membership number.
2. Skin cancer pathway
There are more than 200,000 4 cases of skin cancer diagnosed in the UK each year. Skin cancer occurs when the DNA in the skin is damaged – usually by UV radiation. There are two types of skin cancer to be aware of, non-melanoma skin cancer, which is more common,and melanoma skin cancer.
Symptoms of skin cancer can include moles that change in colour or shape, itchy or rough patches of skin or sores that don’t heal. Spotting skin cancer early can make a huge difference to treatment options and outcomes, so it’s well worth knowing there’s a skin cancer pathway to turn to for quick answers.
Members can access the pathway by logging into their member portal, clicking on the Diagnosis icon, and contacting AXA Health with their membership number.
3. Prostate cancer pathway:
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer for men in the UK 5 with 63,000 men diagnosed every year, and around 510,000 men currently living with the condition.
Common symptoms of prostate issues include needing to wee more frequently, pain in the pelvis and blood in the urine - but one of the ways to see if there’s a problem is a PSA test. This is a blood test that measures the amount of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in the blood.
People can get a free PSA test from their own GP, or pay for one from some local pharmacies. Another option is to use our health check partners Thriva (one of the leading home health check providers in the UK).
Members over 40 can access the pathway by logging into their member portal, clicking on the Diagnosis icon, and contacting AXA Health with their membership number and PSA test results.
Further Reading
Find out more about Equipsme’s approach to cancer here
Read our Cancer HR Guide here
