Archive for the cancer charities Category

Why It’s Time To Pout For A Purpose!

Chris On May 24, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / Leave a comment

It is a great honour for me to host the below blog. It is exclusively written by the wonderful Athena Lamnisos CEO of the Eve Appeal who do such incredible work. I am always happy to get involved with these guys as they are a small but very impactful charity. Collaboration means a lot to us both, and I have been involved throughout the month with their #GetLippy campaign. In this piece Athena tells us more. “The history of the instantly recognisable pink ribbon is an interesting one. The idea came from a grassroots campaign led by a breast cancer activist, who wanted a symbol to highlight the issue that a mere 5% of the United States’ National Cancer Institute budget (of $1.8 billion) was dedicated to cancer prevention. That

We Are Stuck On The Cancer Care Roundabout!

Chris On May 20, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 5 Comments

When I ask my friends how their work is going the most popular response is “same s..t different day!” Working in the area of cancer support, I now experience that. The people are wonderful, so no problems there but when talking to those who are well paid to find solutions in the sector, I am hit by a terrible feeling of deja vu. Professional conferences that cost a lot of money, all take a very similar format. Guest speakers, PowerPoint slides showing that things will be better in the future. There are generally very few patients invited to attend, who are then made to feel grateful for what they receive, from whichever organisation is running it. Every year we are promised things will be better. The analogy I can use

Does The Cancer World NEED The ‘Fear Factor’ For Income?

Chris On May 13, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 12 Comments

During my visit to Palestine, the one very shocking thing that I quickly became aware of, was that everyone I met thought their cancer was a death sentence. This is something that has followed down the generations and will take a long time to change. But the facts are quite different from that. Naturally there are many issues there that make things difficult, but so many more of us are living with cancer, than dying of it. Obviously the earlier the disease is detected the better chance of survival we have. I have come from the generation where cancer (The Big C) as it was known was certainly not discussed openly in my family. My Dad died of bowel cancer and my Mum had breast cancer and survived for more

Sharing Cancer Experiences In Jerusalem And Palestine

Chris On April 29, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 4 Comments

Cancer has taken so much from me, and on many occasions I couldn’t see what the ‘new me’ could give to the world. Lacking so many of the ‘ingredients’ that made up the ‘old me,’ I struggled to find any enthusiasm to carry on. But now I find myself at the centre of the incredible changes that are happening in the cancer world. Patients are finding their voice and finally healthcare is listening. This is not just in the UK but across the world. Innovation is happening quickly and it seems like the clunky corporates are being replaced with caring community organisations, as it is finally seen that a large one size fits all approach is no longer appropriate. I have just returned from a trip to Palestine and Jerusalem,

Are The Giant Charity Brands Exhausting Their Trust?

Chris On March 11, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 4 Comments

As most of you are well aware, I am concerned about the way many of our giant cancer charities behave towards the people they purport to help. Working in a dictatorial manner backed up by aggressive advertising, funded by many trusting donors. Much of my work involves charities and my own experience shows me clearly two types. The ones that work very closely with others and those that don’t, who are now beginning to be isolated and out of touch despite their current income! The most dangerous thing that I see, is that these are the largest ones, and I believe that their loud voices, backed by a never ending stream of all channel advertising, are strangling innovation. They believe they know best and they will give you only their

The Gift Of Growing Up

Chris On February 4, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment, social media and cancer support / Leave a comment

I can’t believe that I am approaching the age of sixty two. Not just because of my illness, but in general how quickly my life has gone. Since the incredible gift of my grandchildren, I am reliving my youth for the third time, having lived it on my own initially, then with my own sons afterwards. My parents lived through the war, and saw life totally different to the way I am now. We had to struggle for every penny and were one of the last in the street to have a television, phone and car. Difficult to remember that I have seen those times. When I went to school I saw the opportunity of breaking away from the cycle of poverty that my parents had lived. I rebelled against

Where Does Your Cancer Cash Go?

Chris On January 7, 2018 / cancer, cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 25 Comments

This year I am focusing on collaboration amongst patient supported work, and how we can affect the current poor outcomes for people affected by cancer. Despite the enormous amount of work and money that goes into it, our survival rates are still some of the worst in Europe. I call this a disaster and like most man made problems, this hasn’t just happened. It is the result of lazy healthcare organisations and a constant stream of politicians from all parties spouting no end of jargon, being massaged by millions of pounds and eager charities looking to further their own influence. Nobody within that cycle wanting to step out of line and lose a cosy career. We all know the increasing cancer figures yet still we can’t improve. Of course this

I See Opportunity Not Obstacles in 2018

Chris On January 1, 2018 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / Leave a comment

2017 has been my busiest year yet. Thankfully my health has remained consistent, and I have been able to push forward our work with simPal, and develop my own speaking and writing work. During the last couple of months of the year I have seen big signs to show me that the world of cancer support is finally beginning to understand what must happen if we are going to be able to provide the correct resources going forward, to help the increasing numbers of people affected by cancer. We have been aware for many years that there are far too many cancer charities to be sustainable and that politicians are slowing the progress of healthcare support. But most importantly I have seen a massive ‘ground swell’ by people affected by