A THAMES Valley charity has received over £100,000 in support from a major cancer support charity to roll out more cancer care in the region.
Thames Valley Positive Support has received a vital £105,110 grant from Macmillan Cancer Support to help improve local cancer care and support services.
It comes as part of a major £7.4 million investment into community organisations across the UK to have a lasting impact on cancer care in the UK.
It comes as the charity warns that the number of people living with cancer is on the rise, with as many as 5.4 million people expected to be living with cancer in the UK by 2045.
This would mark a 58% rise on current levels.
At the same time there is growing concern over how the UK cancer care system is not
just struggling to cope, but also leaving people behind because of who they are, where
they live, what they earn or how they communicate.
TVPS is one of 65 community organisations chosen from across the UK to help improve care and support for people living with cancer today, while also contributing to wider and long-lasting improvements in UK cancer care for the future.
The Pride in Cancer Care project will be funded for two years to help bridge the gap between LGBTQIA+ communities and cancer services.
The project will complement and build on the existing HIV and LGBTQIA+ support already provided by TVPS and through its BeYou service, adding specialist cancer support to the trusted services and relationships already established within local communities.
Through a dedicated LGBTQIA+ Cancer Navigator, a lived experience library and a co-produced inclusivity audit of local cancer pathways, the project will support people affected by cancer to navigate services while identifying and addressing barriers to care.
By putting LGBTQIA+ lived experience at the heart of the project, Pride in Cancer Care will also work alongside existing local cancer services, helping to strengthen inclusivity, improve pathways and ensure services are more responsive to the needs of LGBTQIA+ people.
Macmillan says the need for such community-led action is clear, with more than 1.7 million people across the UK – at least half of all people currently living with cancer – struggling with the impact of their cancer diagnosis on their day-to-day lives 2 , with support often being hard to find or too far away.
Previous research by the charity has also shown that two in three people with cancer who are struggling with ‘everyday’ needs (66%) urgently need more support to help them cope 3.
Macmillan CARE grants are being awarded to projects that can offer support and care where it is needed the most, and which are targeted at three main areas.
This includes improving services for people with cancer and dementia, making sure people are offered a fuller say in decisions about their care, and improving support for those who all too often have poorer outcomes, such as people from ethnically diverse communities, people who are LGBTQ+, those with a disability or those living in the UK’s most economically vulnerable areas.
Chantelle Kinsbury, Cancer Navigator at TVPS said: “Being diagnosed with cancer can be overwhelming enough without also having to worry about whether you will be understood, whether assumptions will be made about you, or whether the people who matter to you will be recognised and included.
“Pride in Cancer Care is about making sure LGBTQIA+ people feel seen, heard and supported throughout their cancer journey.
“My role will be to help people navigate services, advocate for what matters to them and make sure their experiences help shape better cancer care for the future.”
Sarah Macadam, CEO of TVPS said: “Pride in Cancer Care is about much more than supporting individuals through cancer services, it is about creating lasting change.
“LGBTQIA+ people will be at the heart of this project, helping us understand where barriers exist and what genuinely inclusive cancer care should look like.
“By taking that lived experience and working collaboratively with cancer services, we have a real opportunity to improve care for people accessing services today and for those who will need them in the future.”
Heather McLean, Director of Communities & System Partnerships for Macmillan Cancer Support said: “Cancer isn’t fair, but at Macmillan, we believe cancer care and support should be.
“Real change in cancer care starts with those who know the challenges they face the best, and that is communities themselves.
“That is why every local project we are supporting has been shaped by the views of people living with cancer and their loved ones.
“We are so excited to be working with TVPS, and community organisations right across the UK, to address some of the gaps we know exist, to deliver lasting change in local cancer care and to help make things just that little bit better for everyone affected by cancer.
“Together, we want to help make sure that people with cancer can get the personalised support they need, whoever and wherever they are.”
Full details about services provided by Thames Valley Positive Support, including how to get help, are available via: tvps.org.uk
More information about Macmillan Cancer Support is available via: macmillan.org.uk
