Almost one in three people who care for a loved one with cancer are spending as much time doing that as they would working full time, new research has revealed.

Furthermore, some of these carers are working full-time jobs as well.

The research was released as part of the ‘Make Blood Cancer Visible' campaign, which aims to raise awareness of this disease and provide practical advice and support to people living with blood cancer and their carers.

There are three main types of blood cancer - leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma - although there are many different types of each of these.

Acute, aggressive forms of blood cancer will require immediate treatment, however slow-growing blood cancers can be experienced as a chronic condition.

With some forms of blood cancer, the person will not require immediate treatment, or may never require treatment. Instead, they are called for regular blood tests and appointments to monitor the situation until the disease progresses and treatment may become necessary.

The research, which was commissioned as part of this new campaign, highlights the importance of carers to people with cancer. It found that 91% of people living with blood cancer felt that the care they received was of huge or high importance to them.

According to the findings, 29% of those caring for a loved one with cancer were doing so for the equivalent of a full working week or more, with some caring for more than 45 hours every week.

Among these, 22% were also working paid part-time or full-time jobs on top of their caring duties.

However, 63% of cancer carers said that they received no support in their role. They suggested a number of different areas of training and support that would have helped them better prepare for their caring role, including mental health or mindfulness training, advice on how to combine caring with managing their own life and household, and advice on how to get the most out of an medical appointment.

In response to this, the ‘Make Blood Cancer Visible' campaign has launched a series of information videos to help those living with the disease and their carers. They address issues such as the emotional wellbeing of patients and their carers, and can be viewed here.

Campaign ambassador and broadcaster, Louise McSharry, was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2014. She urged those affected by blood cancer to access the services that they need.

"I know from my own blood cancer journey how much my husband Gordon's help and support meant to me and how important it is for people going through diagnosis and treatment to have the support of partners, relatives and friends to help them through this scary and difficult time.

"I would urge people affected by blood cancer to access all the information and services they need. This campaign has created a video series that will help provide some of the knowledge they need and also where they can avail of further supports," she explained.

According to consultant haematologist, Prof Peter O'Gorman, of the Mater Hospital in Dublin, ‘huge strides' have been made in the area of blood cancer treatments.

"For example, multiple myeloma survival has doubled in the last three years because of new treatments. A network of Irish haematologists is collaborating with the top global centres to bring access to the best new treatments for Irish patients. The message is one of hope and progress for patients with blood cancer in Ireland," he pointed out.

The campaign is a collaboration between the Irish Cancer Society, Multiple Myeloma Ireland, Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia Ireland and Janssen Sciences Ireland.

For more information on the campaign, click here.

For more information on cancer in general, contact the Irish Cancer Society's Cancer Nurseline on 1800 200 700, or click here.