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A new art exhibition has opened at GenesisCare Bristol Aztec West. The leading private cancer care provider is residence to the immersive MPN 10 art exhibition as part of its UK 2024 tour. The exhibition, created by Novartis UK, shines a light on the symptoms of rare blood cancers called myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs). In total 10 bespoke sculptures have been exclusively designed by five mural artists from around the UK, with Bristol artist Spike Clark chosen to design numbers 8 and 10.

MPNs are a type of blood cancer which originate in the bone marrow, with three main types: myelofibrosis (MF), essential thrombocythaemia (ET) and polycythaemia (PV). With MPNs affecting ~4,100 people in the UK each year, it's never been more important to be aware of the symptoms. The installation forms part of Novartis and MPN Voice’s campaign ‘Meet the MPN 10’ which features 10 sculpture characters which personify the most common symptoms associated with these types of cancers – for example, ‘Full Up Fred’ and ‘Night Sweats Nick’ who were both created by Bristol  aerosol artist Spike Clark. Visitors to the installation can meet and interact with the characters via an augmented reality (AR) experience. 

The immersive pop-up art exhibition will be on display outside GenesisCare in Bristol until mid-June. Local Bristol artist Spike Clark, one of five artists across the UK selected to collaborate on this unique installation says: “I was thrilled to be part of such a fantastic project. In the past I’ve worked on art to highlight specific topics but never anything health related, so this was a really interesting project for me. I’d never heard of MPNs, which is exactly why it is so important we raise awareness of them!”

Katie Price, Centre Leader at GenesisCare in Bristol says “We’re very excited to host the MPN art exhibition. It’s so important for patients to feel seen and hopefully this will generate awareness of the condition and its many symptoms as well as empathy for those suffering with the disease. We’re proud to have expert clinicians and care teams here in Bristol to treat patients suffering with the disease and we’re passionate about helping to raise awareness around these rare blood cancers. We’re delighted to be hosting the event in the grounds of our cancer care centre and look forward to welcoming the wider community to Bristol’s latest art event.”

Alisia O’Sullivan, MPN Voice says: “One of the challenges with MPNs is that symptoms often go under the radar and get confused with ageing or other conditions. For example, if someone is facing extreme fatigue or experiencing nights sweats, they may put this down to the menopause, or their time of life. More needs to be done to recognise and identify these symptoms early so that people living with the condition can seek help from medical professionals to better manage their symptoms, and those who are undiagnosed can seek a potential diagnosis sooner.” 

Find out more about the MPN campaign here: https://www.novartis.com/uk-en/mpn10. 

If you have any concerns around symptoms of MPNs or for more information on diagnostics or treatments at GenesisCare, visit Bristol - Oncology Centre for Cancer care | GenesisCare UK or call 0808 304 2332