This was their full response. I didn’t bother to respond there was too much to correct them on!
Thank you for contacting us with your concerns about the use of gender-neutral language in our cancer information. I apologise for any offence or upset caused, as this is never our intention.
Macmillan wants to be here for everyone living with cancer. As an organisation we want to do everything we can do to level the playing field and use our voice on behalf of those that are under-served, under-represented and marginalised to ensure everyone gets the support that is right for them.
I wanted to reassure you about the reasons for the discrepancy you raise, and that it has now been resolved. All our information is reviewed and updated regularly, both by expert health professionals and people living with cancer, but because of the sheer volume of content we can’t do this all at once. Unfortunately, the impact of the pandemic meant that Macmillan had to make some difficult decisions about resource so we weren’t able to update all our information as quickly as we would have liked. We had already made changes in some areas, like the pages on cervical cancer, but not yet in others. Our team is working hard to put this right and the language with relation to cancers like testicular and prostate cancer has either already been changed or will be imminently.
Gender-neutral language or gender-inclusive language is language that avoids bias towards a particular sex or social gender. A person may identify with a gender that is different from their birth sex or with no gender at all; even though for many people their sex and gender are the same.
Not everyone who has a cervix, for example, identifies as female, so when we are talking about specific body parts we use language that reflects that it’s not just women who have that body part and that not having that body part makes no one less of a woman.
Ultimately our information will only use gender specific language where clinically necessary, in order to make our information really clear (for example, when referring to male or female hormones or anatomical structures), so we are not inadvertently discouraging anyone from seeking the holistic support they need. Wherever this happens we will always try to remain inclusive. For example, we might explain that if you have had gender affirming surgery or are intersex, your body may be different in some ways to what we describe here. In relation to cervical cancer we use: “women, transmen and people who were assigned female at birth”.
Our use of the word gender is inclusive and respects identity, so everyone feels they can come to us for much-needed information and support, this follows a similar approach to the NHS. This approach to our content is part of our commitment to ensure that our services, including the information we provide, are tackling inequalities and removing barriers for everyone living with cancer to get the support that they need.
Clearly there is more work to be done to help people understand their bodies and the importance of screening, such as cervical screening. The NHS automatically invites people who are registered as eligible to screening tests and we will continue to provide information and support about why these are important.
I hope my explanation of our rationale is helpful and I trust you feel you can hold Macmillan Cancer Support and the services we provide for those living with cancer in high regard. If I can be of any further help, please email me on [email protected] or call 0300 1000 200.