A NORTH-EAST activist has been helping to spread the word about Cancer Research UK's Screening Matters campaign by travelling to Westminster.

Stafford Scholes from Esh Winning, County Durham, who is Secretary of the North Durham Prostate Cancer Support Group, has pledged himself to fight all forms of cancer, since his wife Stella died of liver cancer earlier this year.

He travelled to Parliament recently to talk to Durham City MP Dr Roberta Blackman-Woods about how they can help improve cancer screening.

Mr Scholes, who has been fighting prostate cancer for years, went as part of a group of volunteer campaigners from around the country to meet their MPs in London.

The Screening Matters campaign aims to highlight the importance of the three NHS cancer screening programmes, for breast, bowel and cervical cancer. It will also reach out to those people eligible for screening who are not currently taking part.

Dr Blackman-Woods has agreed to promote the campaign in Parliament, work with her local Primary Care Trust to make screening a priority, and encourage constituents to attend screening if invited.

Dr Blackman-Woods MP said: "It was really useful to meet Stafford. He highlighted to me some important issues around cancer screening. I support Cancer Research UK's Screening Matters campaign and will be following up on the actions I've committed to today."

Stafford said: "It was enormously helpful to have the support of Roberta for the Screening Matters campaign, which aims to encourage an extra three million people to attend breast, bowel and cervical screening and to raise awareness among the public so that they take advantage of these programmes that will help save lives."