Chris's Cancer Community

Cancer And Commercial Collaborations

Chris On April 30, 2017 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 3 Comments

My work means that I am constantly communicating with people around the world, and I find it fascinating the differences that there are from country to country. Today I am delighted to share a piece from my friends at Tommy John, a men’s underwear designer company based in New York, who are working with the Testicular Cancer Foundation to raise awareness of this cancer. This type of collaboration is becoming more common and in many ways is a good thing. However I am personally sceptical that we don’t get to the situation which we have with Breast Cancer, that it is more about selling products and promotion, than raising awareness and producing positive results. Our world is changing rapidly, and in the cancer sector we need to be looking at all opportunities to

Work And Cancer (Jeremy’s Experience.)

Chris On April 17, 2017 / cancer awareness, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 3 Comments

Today I have the great honour to host another piece from my friend Jeremy, who talks about his own experiences and opinions around work and cancer. “This is some of my reflections on cancer and work. These are personal thoughts, there are plenty of web sites which give official and legal advice. You can read my story here and I have been incredibly fortunate in having a really supportive and helpful employer. I have also been fortunate in having an employer at all — the situation with cancer is much more difficult for those out of work or self employed or where there are a handful of employees. It can be dangerous to generalise from your own experience as each type of cancer is different and every person needs to make their

“I’m Sorry But You Have Womb Cancer”

Chris On April 9, 2017 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 7 Comments

I have been to another meeting this week, held by individuals working together to support people after a cancer diagnosis. There was so much passion in the room as people shared their personal experiences and expertise, and explained how they planned to expand their work. There was a Q+A after the presentation and a Health Professional asked where the money to support the project was coming from as the N.H.S was in severe financial straits. Personally I am fed up with that being wheeled out time after time, as an excuse not to change things. It has become an easy answer to everything. Actually the facts are that there are some incredible resources for people affected by cancer outside the system. However, despite the financial issues, the N.H.S etc have

Entering Very Humbling Times.

Chris On April 2, 2017 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 17 Comments

It has been a few weeks since I have written a personal blog, as I have been on a bit of a road trip. Although I suffer with terrible fatigue, I have had to push myself through some incredible presentations and meetings. My work is reaching the level that I have always aspired to, so it is difficult to pass up the many incredible opportunities that are now coming my way. With the combination of Your simPal and my own personal work, many new opportunities are opening up, and more and more people are becoming interested in what we do. This is leading to being invited to present nationally and internationally, my ideas and projects. Since I got sick, I have lost a lot of my confidence, and despite my

Thinking ‘Outside The Box’ Should Be Normal Now!

Chris On March 19, 2017 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment, social media and cancer support / 2 Comments

It’s been some time since I wrote a new piece due to refocusing my priorities. Since Your SimPal has been live, approximately 6 months now, it has dominated my work. We are now helping increasing numbers of people across the country, and interest in our work is growing organically. It is challenging in so many ways, yet so satisfying knowing we can do something to improve the lives of many affected by cancer. People now know me for my interest in innovation in the cancer sector. There are many ways to help with existing problems if only large organisations would ‘look up’ and search outside their safety zone. Main stream services have little imagination having been ‘corporatised.’ The problem us innovators face is that most funding goes to large organisations and

Cancer Does Not Discriminate (Jeremy’s Story)

Chris On February 19, 2017 / cancer, cancer awareness, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment, social media and cancer support / 5 Comments

In my work I get to meet some wonderful people and Jeremy Marshall is one of those. A man who’s life was also brought crashing down with a cancer diagnosis. I was delighted that Jeremy accepted my invitation to share his experiences on the site. His career is one that most of us can only dream about, but of course when it comes to cancer there is no discrimination. “I have had a very happy and blessed life. I was never in hospital for a day, married for nearly 30 years and have three wonderful children plus a really interesting career. Then about 4 years ago I found a small lump on my ribs. At my wife’s urging I went to the GP who said “it’s probably just a fatty

Facing Cancer And Overcoming Fears

Chris On February 5, 2017 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 5 Comments

I am writing this on World Cancer Day, and as our blog is truly international I wanted to share a piece from some friends in the US. This day is all about unity, and I have found that cancer is unifying many people, wherever they are in the world. Personally I don’t believe it is one day, I feel it is something we should work a lot harder at to continue into the future! Of course there is always a commercial angle to it, where you can buy various wrist bands but it should mean so much more than that in the longer term. Cancer seems to unify the people affected by it but divide the people working in it. Healthcare, pharmaceutical and charities all working in their own way, which will of course

Why The Lack Of Sharing From Many Cancer Charities?

Chris On January 29, 2017 / cancer awareness, cancer charities, Cancer Support, cancer survival, cancer treatment / 18 Comments

We are so far only one month in to 2017, and I can say that in terms of my cancer work it has been an incredible start. I have frequently talked and written about the frustrating lack of collaboration in the cancer sector, and unfortunately that is still the case now. Large brands only interested in their own marketing and income streams, and the N.H.S going from one crisis to another. Many years have passed since I started my own cancer journey, and my business skills have shown me a very different way to help people affected by cancer. Not just the patient but also family members etc. We ( Your simPal) wanted to provide help directly to people, with all money raised being passed back to help others. Most importantly