This winter, please help us make cancer treatment more bearable.
A cancer diagnosis can turn your world upside down. There’s so much to take in. There might be shock, sadness, and uncertainty. Patients worry about their treatment and the inevitable side effects they’ll experience.
Chemotherapy usually starts soon after patients receive their diagnosis. It’s aggressive and can cause tiredness, nausea, sickness, hair loss, mouth sores, skin and digestive problems.
The standard of care provided by the team in the chemotherapy unit at Whittington hospital is exceptional. A recent patient survey found that the care provided is top in the north central London area and on a par with the world leading Royal Marsden. However, we know there’s so much more we can do to help make the experience more comfortable and the unit more welcoming.
£10 would buy a comfort pack containing things like an eye mask, lip balm, hand cream, mints and a reusable water bottle
£20 would pay for a warm, soft blanket
£30 would pay for a weekly delivery of fresh fruit supplied to the ward
£100 would fund four sessions of massage
£500 would buy a television to distract and occupy waiting patients
£1000 would pay for a self-service machine serving coffee, tea and hot chocolate for all chemotherapy patients for a year
Wesley’s story
Wesley (pictured) was 43 years old when he was diagnosed with bowel cancer. At that time, he was volunteering at his local church that runs a food bank.
His consultant team told him he would need an operation on his colon to remove the cancer, followed by chemotherapy.
Wesley said, “When I received the news about my cancer diagnosis, I felt sad and kept asking myself, ‘why me?’. It didn’t feel fair”.
Wesley was very grateful for the care he received at Whittington Hospital. “During my treatment I felt so supported but still a little sad that I had to go through it”.
Thankfully, Wesley is feeling much better now and is being monitored by the cancer surveillance programme, which will last for 5 years. He says will always be grateful for the treatment and the support he received.
Wesley has since benefited from the ‘C-Factor’: a support group for people who have or have had cancer, funded by Whittington Health Charity.
Wesley is just one of around 70 people who receive a cancer diagnosis at Whittington Hospital every month.
With your support, we can make cancer treatment more bearable for people like Wesley, by funding things like soft blankets, comfort packs, a television, a coffee machine and fresh fruit supplies.
Please donate if you can.
