0808 808 00 00 / macmillan.org.uk

Patients with coronavirus are often admitted with just the clothes they are wearing. Family members are not allowed to visit, and many find themselves without basic supplies, such as toothbrushes and nightclothes.

Sarah Davies, a Macmillan Cancer Support, Cancer Information and Support Facilitator, is part of the Patient Experience Team at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board.

The team have been at the forefront of efforts to collect, secure and distribute supplies to those patients in the hospitals who are alone in hospital wards without necessities.

Sarah is still supporting people living with cancer by signposting people to local support, information and advice even though the Macmillan Cancer Information and Support Centre, located in the concourse of the University of Wales Hospital in Cardiff is now a storeroom.

Speaking about the challenges of running a team from the Macmillan Centre, Sarah, said: “It can be quite challenging as a team to work in this small room. We need to respect the two-metre guideline for social distancing – so only one person can be in the room at a time.”

There are two other collection centres – one at the Macmillan Cancer Support Information Centre at University Hospital Llandough and one at Woodlands House.

Prior to the UK-wide lockdown, Sarah had already closed the Macmillan information centre.

“It’s a small space,” said Sarah, “and I didn’t want to have people in there touching and sharing our information and support leaflets.” 

People looking for Macmillan Cancer Information and Support were directed to the Macmillan website at www.macmillan.org.uk.

Speaking about the support they have had, Sarah, said:” We’ve had some great support so far from both organisations and individuals. Just one great example, is the University Dental Hospital which gave us toothbrushes for the patients.”

University Dental Hospital in Cardiff donated toothbrushes
University Dental Hospital in Cardiff donated toothbrushes

The team are looking for further support from people and have set up a Just Giving page.

A number of volunteers usually help to support the Macmillan Cancer Information and Support Centres, but Sarah stood down them early in the crisis. Many of her volunteers needed to self-isolate but some remain keen to still help other people.

Clive Hall, Sarah Davies and Sandy Clubb
Volunteer Clive Hall, Sarah Davies and Volunteer Manager Sandy Clubb

Talking about future plans to use the skills of her Macmillan volunteers, Sarah, said: “University Hospital Wales has its own volunteer service, and I think that there are couple of the Macmillan volunteers who would be great supporting patients as part of the Health Board’s Chatterline service.

“This is where volunteers phone isolated patients. It’s a great way to combat loneliness and the impact that this can have on a patients well-being is tremendous.” 

Sarah is also in discussions with other senior Macmillan professionals to begin to identify and develop ways that they can support Cancer Nurse Specialists during this critical time.

If you are looking for information about all types of cancer, including diagnosis, treatments and drugs, as well as advice to help with the different ways cancer may impact your life, visit the Macmillan Cancer Support Website.

We understand that people living with cancer are worried about coronavirus.  We have information and advice here on our website.


1989 – Sharon Manning began working at Glan Clwyd Hospital as a cleaner

2004 – Graduated with Bachelor of Nursing degree (BN) from Bangor University

2011 – Became a Macmillan Gynaecology Clinical Nurse Specialist

2017 – Winner of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board New Ways of Working

–       Winner of Macmillan Innovation Excellence Award

–       Awarded Macmillan Fellowship

2021- Awarded honorary lectureship with Bangor University

Sharon Manning, a Macmillan Gynaecology Clinical Nurse Specialist at Glan Clwyd Hospital in Rhyl, has been invited by Bangor University to become an honorary lecturer.

An inspirational Macmillan nurse, Sharon has won several awards and commendations for her innovative and compassionate approach towards end of life cancer care.

She will share her nursing story and professional experience with undergraduate students on the three-year, Adult Nursing BN course, as well as with postgraduate nurses.

Speaking about this honorary role at Bangor University, Sharon, said: “I am really excited and grateful for this opportunity from Bangor University, especially as it is where I studied for my nursing degree. My aim is simply to inspire student nurses to be open to innovation and change. I want the students to touch or speak to patients like they would want themselves or their loved ones to be spoken to or touched.”

Sharon, who is originally from Lancashire, has worked for the NHS in Wales for more than 30 years. In 1989, after becoming a single parent, Sharon moved to north Wales, determined to make a fresh start with her life. Her first role on the hospital wards was working as a cleaner at Glan Clwyd Hospital. Speaking about her first job, Sharon, said: “In the departments where I would clean, I would also observe qualified and student nurses working. It made me think ‘Wow, I would give my right arm to have that opportunity!’ However, I never thought I could achieve it as I left school at 15 with no qualifications.”

Sharon decided that to develop a career she needed to gain qualifications, so her next step was to become a nursing auxiliary. She successfully achieved this, working in paediatrics for four years before gaining a NVQ Level 3 in Healthcare Studies. 

When Sharon started working in Glan Clwyd Hospital, patients in north Wales did not have a cancer centre. Patients had to travel to the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Liverpool or the Christie Hospital in Manchester for cancer treatments.

In 1994, the Clatterbridge Centre began to hold a weekly outpatient clinic at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board but the multi-disciplinary team had no nursing auxiliary. Sharon spotted an opportunity and joined the team. It was from this point that Sharon’s focus on providing the best possible care for people living with cancer began. It was also when Sharon decided to become a registered nurse (RN).

One day at a meeting Sharon was told by a registered nurse in the team that her opinions were not needed. Immediately after the meeting, Sharon went to the School of Nursing in Bangor to find out how to enrol so that she too could become a registered nurse.

Sharon was accepted to study Adult Nursing at Bangor University. Speaking about her decision to pursue a nursing career in her 40s, Sharon, said: “I qualified as a nurse in 2004 when I was 47. I always knew my nursing career would be short. I trained late, but that didn’t matter to me. I knew I definitely wanted to make a difference to the quality of care patients received.”

In 2017, Sharon received three prestigious awards in recognition of her innovative work. Some ovarian cancer patients in the palliative care stage of their disease can develop malignant ascites, which is a painful build-up of fluid in the lining of the abdomen. Sharon set about introducing permanent catheters for palliative ovarian cancer patients – a life-changing service that allows patients to drain the ascitic fluid from their abdomen at home, rather than having to go to hospital to be drained. This approach reduced the number of hospital visits undertaken during the final stages of the patient’s life and gives the patient more time with their loved ones.

Speaking about her nursing career as a Macmillan professional, Sharon said: “I am very proud to carry the Macmillan title in my role. The Macmillan name is very well respected. Patients, relatives, and members of the public expect the best form you and they should receive nothing less.

“My patient and I have previously promoted Macmillan successfully. My patient and her husband shared their cancer story and spoke about how I, as a Macmillan professional had supported them both. Our story was made into a booklet and sent to the public asking for donations. We raised £430,000! What a wonderful legacy my patient left for her family.

“When I reflect on my work, I feel extremely privileged. I have looked, and currently look after some beautiful ladies along their cancer journey. I am frequently humbled by their bravery and resilience. The true heroes are these ladies who face their cancer diagnosis with such courage and dignity.”

Talking about her current CNS role, Sharon said:” More than ever before as key workers we now concentrate on the patient’s individual wellbeing. One of my roles is to psychologically support the patient, their family or carer from diagnosis, through treatment, disease recurrence, palliation and those patients living on with their cancer. I am there to help enable them to carry on their life, knowing that if they need me, they can call me.”

 “I am 64 now and intend to work in this post for the next two years. I never stop looking and asking can we do things differently to enhance patient care and I will go on doing that until I retire.”

Lynne Williams, Head of School of Medical and Health Sciences at Bangor University said:

“It is with great pride and pleasure that we see Mrs Sharon Manning has been awarded the title of Honorary lecturer here at Bangor University. It’s good to see that an alumna of ours has gone on to achieve great results and improvement to services for patients with Oncogynaecological conditions ensuring that they are at the forefront of care and her innovation to services is to be commended.

In addition, to have Sharon be able to assist with the delivery of our new curriculum and shape the future nursing workforce and inspire the next generation of nurses is excellent news.”

Talking about Sharon’s career and the impact that she has made as a Macmillan professional, Richard Pugh, Macmillan Head of Services in Wales said: “Sharon is an exceptional nurse, and a great role-model for anyone embarking on a career in nursing.  

“Sharon puts her patients’ needs at the very heart of her nursing, and it is this focus that drives her need to get the very best care for her patients. She’s determined and innovative and we are very proud that she is a Macmillan nurse.

“Sharon has two more years in nursing, so the honorary lectureship awarded by Bangor University this year, is a great opportunity for Sharon to share her professional experience and inspire the next generation of nurses.”

If you would like to find out more about nursing at Bangor University, visit their website at https://www.bangor.ac.uk/.

The Macmillan Support Line on 0808 808 00 00 (open seven days a week) has specially trained nurses and cancer information specialists who can provide information and advice, as well as emotional support, to help people with cancer cope with the additional strain of the coronavirus pandemic.

Powys residents who are living with cancer will be able to find out about an innovative programme called “Improving the Cancer Journey in Powys” (ICJ Powys) by logging onto a new web link created to share updates and information about the programmes aims and ambitions.

The ICJ Powys programme is a three-way partnership programme funded by Macmillan Cancer Support and involving Powys Teaching Health Board and Powys County Council as key public service providers.  

Dr Jeremy Tuck, Assistant Medical Director at Powys Teaching Health Board said:

The Improving the Cancer programme supports the county’s Health and Care Strategy which is focused on tackling the big four diseases that limit life for our residents.  Cancer is one of these and our aim is to introduce a holistic approach to the care and support that people receive following a diagnosis.

“Our webpage provides an overview, a video highlighting how this programme came about and some useful links to supporting organisations like the Bracken Trust, PAVO and Credu. There are also some video’s by GPs and a resident who speaks about her cancer journey which people can access via a  link to our You Tube channel. I hope that anyone living with cancer finds it a useful resource that we’ll be updating as we progress with our pilot projects.”

As a rural county with no district general hospital Powys residents are referred to one of around 14 hospitals for initial assessments and treatment which can be either short or long-term.   

The programme’s over-riding aim is to ensure that following a diagnosis of cancer, every adult is offered a follow up holistic needs’ assessment. This can be completed online, in the comfort of the person’s own home. It allows them to consider and highlight any key concerns they may have whether this is about eligibility for benefits, making a will or finding a local support group.

Once submitted a local link worker identifies the key support and services that can meet the person’s needs and has a follow up conversation to guide and signpost them.  Completing the online version also allows the person to access a range of Macmillan information sheets which offer advice on the topics selected as ones highlighted. 

To access the ICJ webpage, go to:  https://www.powysrpb.org/icjpowys

The Macmillan Support Line is open seven days a week between 8am-8pm on 0808 808 00 00 or visit macmillan.org.uk.

Ends…

People living with cancer in Powys are being invited to share their experiences through an innovative programme – the first of its kind in Wales – which aims to improve the way cancer care and support is provided in the county.

Improving the Cancer Journey in Powys (ICJ Powys) is a three-way partnership between Macmillan Cancer Support, Powys County Council and Powys Teaching Health Board.

ICJ Powys wants to ensure that every adult in the county who is diagnosed with cancer is able to have a conversation with a trained professional about their needs and how best these can be met. 

Cerys Humphreys, Improving the Cancer Journey Programme Lead

Cerys Humphreys, the Improving the Cancer Journey Programme Lead, said: “We want everyone in Powys who is living with cancer, to live life as fully as they can, and by providing practical, physical, emotional, spiritual and social support, so people can achieve what matters most to them. Listening to people’s stories, experiences and insights about their cancer journey is a fundamental part of the ICJ Powys programme. 

Over the next few months, we will be engaging with a number of stakeholders, including staff, in order to gain an in depth understanding of what holistic support is currently offered to individuals living with cancer along their pathway.  We also would like thoughts and ideas on how an integrated model of care could look like in Powys, in order to ensure individuals living with cancer feel listened to and that their identified needs are met.” 

Richar

Richard Pugh, Head of Partnerships for Macmillan in Wales, said: “Often a diagnosis of cancer creates a number of worries – not just worries about how their treatment will affect their health and well-being, but also practical things like returning to work, paying bills and living with the long-term effects. This is particularly the case now we are also all coping with the impact of Covid-19 which is affecting every area of our lives.

For more information please contact the programme the team on ICJPowys@powys.gov.uk or contact Sue Ling, Communications and Engagement Officer directly on 01597 8260423. ​

We’re really pleased that 2018 Big brother runner up Akeem Griffiths has got behind our Leap For Macmillan challenge, but we wanted to know a bit more about what experience touched Akeem’s life and drives his support for Macmillan in Wales.

What is your cancer experience, and how has this led you to support Macmillan in Wales?

Since a very young age I have always participated in several events for different charities, one of them being ‘Macmillan Cancer Support’ and the reason for this is because I have always been brought up in a society that ‘the purpose of life is not just to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honourable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.’

Macmillan Cancer Support started to become one of my main charities and the reason for this is because they helped a very good friend of mine during a very difficult time in his life when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer.

Unfortunately, the outcome with this cancer resulted in him having both testicles removed.

During this difficult time, we’d talk on the phone every evening, and at one point he honestly thought his life had ended. I could feel his emotions powering through my mind, then Macmillan arrived.

If it wasn’t for this organisation in terms of helping James both physically and emotionally then James may not have been here today,

I cannot thank them enough for what they have done.

Finally, I have always wanted to become an ambassador for Macmillan, based on what they did for my close friend, and I feel that I am getting closer to achieving this goal.

Apart from the ‘Leap for Macmillan’ video (which is great!), are you doing anything else to fundraise for, and raise awareness of Macmillan in Wales?

I am currently discussing my schedule for 2020/2021 with my manager Lisa, and we can confirm that we have some big events coming up. One of the events being the ‘Great Wall of China Marathon’ in 2021 for Macmillan in Wales. Announcements will be on my social media channels over the next couple of weeks.

You’re a great friend of Macmillan in Wales, what would you say to other people thinking about giving their time and energy to support Macmillan?

I am proud of being a good friend of Macmillan in Wales.

My advice to other people thinking about giving their time and energy to support Macmillan is to ‘JUST GO FOR IT!!’.

If you think that a challenge might be unrealistic just remember ‘Life’s only limitations are those you set upon yourself, for as long as you strive hard enough anything is achievable’.

Finally, if you feel like giving up always remember the reason why you are doing this in the first place, it is to help this fantastic organisation support a loved one of your’s.

Could you do something special with your extra day on February the 29th and pledge to do just one thing for Macmillan ?

It could be setting yourself a challenge, giving a small donation or even giving your time. Let us know your pledge by using the hashtag #LeapForMacmillan. With your support, we can help people living with cancer in Wales live life as fully as they can

Find out more on our JustGiving page.

A big thanks to F9 Films for making Akeem’s video for us.

This year is a leap year, and what better way to spend the extra day than by giving your support to Macmillan. Nikki James, Area Fundraising Manager in Wales, tells us how you can be part of Leap for Macmillan.  

Tell us about Leap for Macmillan?
With this year being a leap year we wanted to challenge people as to how they will use their extra day, if you’re a lady you might be planning to propose 😉, but we’re hoping people might like to use their day to support Macmillan – this could be fundraising, volunteering, sharing your story or even
campaigning.  
How can people get involved?
Visit our website at www.macmillan.org.uk and click on get involved, there are lots of ideas and we’d love to hear from you. 

Maybe you’d like to come up with your own event, we love to hear new ideas!  Go to our organise your own event page on our website
to see the support we can offer.  

Can I only take part on Saturday 29 February? What if I am busy that day?
We all have an extra day this year, so you don’t have to take part on the 29th February – pick a day that works for you!    

How do people share with Macmillan what they’re up to for ‘Leap for Macmillan’?  
Let us know on our social media pages (Twitter / Instagram / Facebook) using the hashtag #LeapForMacmillan and don’t forget to tag us in @macmillancymru    

How can I find out more about donating or giving my time to support Macmillan in Wales?
You can donate on our Just Giving Page https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/leapformacmillan2020 check out our website for lots of information, or give us a quick call on 0300 1000 200 or DM us – we’d love to hear from you!    

At a Macmillan Coffee Morning recently held at the Senedd in Cardiff Bay more than half of the Assembly’s 60 Members enjoyed a cup of coffee, slice of cake and a chat with some of the charity’s specialist cancer workforce – including Macmillan nurses, information support specialists and welfare benefits advisers.

They also met with some Macmillan Wales volunteers who shared their cancer experiences and the reasons why they give their free time to support the charity.

This is the 28th year of Macmillan’s flagship fundraising event, which raised more than £26 million in the UK last year.

Congratulations to Macmillan’s Sarah Davies, who is the very first Macmillan professional in Wales to be presented with the Macmillan Volunteering Quality Standard (MVQS).

Sarah, who is an Information and Support Facilitator, received her award at presentation attended by staff and volunteers at the Macmillan Information Support Service in the University Hospital of Wales.

The MVQS, recognises the development and improvement that Sarah has made to the volunteer experience at the three information centres she runs.

Sarah is supported by a total of 18 volunteers across the three sites in the University Hospital of Wales, University Hospital Llandough and Barry Hospital.

Volunteer Clive Hall volunteered with Sarah since November 2018. A Cardiff resident, who recently retired, Clive decided to join the team when his neighbour who already volunteering with Sarah already, recommended he give it a go.  Sadly, Clive had lost his sister to cancer and he felt that this was a good way to give something back.

Speaking about his volunteering, Clive said: ‘’The best parts are also the most challenging – often you chat with someone, and literally 30 minutes before they have been receiving a cancer diagnosis. You know you have made a difference to that person, even if it’s just by listening to them and giving them some useful information to take away’’.

The MVQS is an optional development programme that Macmillan offers to staff and professionals. It is delivering through one-to-one coaching over a 12-month period.

Sarah has been managing volunteers for a number of years but decided last year that she would take on MVQS.

‘’I wanted to do the qualification to improve the service for both volunteers and the people who benefit from it, to make sure that everyone has the best possible experience’’.

Reflecting on how MVQS had helped her, Sarah said:

‘’It’s definitely helped me to make changes. For instance, I’ve started logging volunteer hours as a way of demonstrating how much extra resource the volunteers add to the centre and put in place things like the volunteer newsletter and the comments board’’.


Sarah and Clive pictured with members of the volunteering services team from Cardiff and the Vale Health Board who celebrated their award with them.

Talking about his experience of volunteering with Sarah at the information centre, volunteer Clive said: ‘’Sarah is definitely the right person for the job! She trusts us to get on with things, but she’s always there (or we can phone her) if we need her.

“She knows when to put the kettle on and have a chat too if we’ve had a challenging conversation with someone.’’

Asked what the MVQS award meant to the team, Clive said:

‘’It’s good to know that volunteers are valued. Sarah put’s a lot of time into making sure that we have what we need, so for instance when I started she didn’t leave me on my own in the centre to greet people dropping in, until we were both happy that I was ready.’’

Being the first professional in Wales to receive the MVQS award, Sarah is now keen to share the experience and inspire other Macmillan colleagues who work with volunteers to undertake the quality standard.

‘’I would definitely recommend it. I’ve received a lot of support along the way in terms of the coaching I’ve received from Sandy, and I’ve found the resources really helpful. It’s been useful to reflect on how I could make changes to improve things for volunteers.’’

Macmillan operates a number of quality assurance standards that ensure services are delivered to the best possible quality for people living with and affected by cancer.

Sarah and her team of volunteers are delighted to have also completed their Macmillan Quality Environment Mark (MQEM) and the Macmillan Quality Information and Support Service (MQUISS) standards this year.

These quality frameworks relate to the standard of the ‘environment’ in the centre itself, and how they deliver their service. The standards cover all manner of things such as the comfort and cleanliness of the centres, to the types of information booklets they have available and how they signpost people to other services such as welfare benefit advice.

Sarah and her volunteering team are really pleased to have gained all three quality standards in one year, a testament to the hard work of everyone involved.

Reflecting on how they work together, Sarah added: ‘’Working with a team of volunteers, you realise how much everyone contributes in different ways, often with the life experience they bring with them. One of the team, Sheila, has travelled a lot, and she is fantastic at giving advice about how a cancer diagnosis can affect holidays and travel insurance, which comes up a lot when people have had a diagnosis. Another volunteer, Steve, is great at supporting people who have diabetes and are worried about what this might mean for their cancer journey, as he has diabetes himself.’’

Clive Hall, Sarah Davies and Sandy Clubb

If you are a Macmillan professional working with volunteers and would like to find out more about MVQS, get in touch with Sandy, she’d be delighted to chat with you.

And if this blog has inspired you to volunteer for Macmillan, take a look at the volunteering opportunities in Wales on our Volunteer Village

Recently launched in Wales at an event in Cardiff, Macmillan Cancer Support, the Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Cancer and Nutrition Collaboration called for changes to the delivery of cancer care across the UK, with a greater focus on prehabilitation.

Prehabilitation allows people with cancer to prepare for treatment by promoting healthy behaviours, and through needs-based prescribing of exercise, nutrition and psychological support. It aims to empower and optimise patients for cancer treatment and improve their long-term health and well-being prospects.

Seventy per cent of the 1.8 million people in the UK living with cancer are also living with one or more other long-term health conditions. Macmillan’s report and guidance, Prehabilitation for people with cancer, promotes cancer service redesign in order to integrate prehabilitation into the cancer pathway. Evidence tells us that prehabilitation contributes to:

There is no need to wait for a secondary care cancer diagnosis to start prehabilitation. It is entirely possible to start this approach much earlier at the point of referral to a fast track cancer pathway. This is a ‘teachable moment’ and a study undertaken in Wales has shown advice and signposting for prehabilitation interventions at time of referral is feasible and effective. Although many of these patients will not turn out to have cancer at this time, making lifestyle changes at this point will reduce their future risk of developing cancer and other long-term conditions.

In Wales pre-treatment health optimisation and prehabilitation are explicitly mentioned in the Cancer Delivery Plan for Wales 2016- 2020. This gives Wales the strongest policy platform of all the UK nations for the widespread delivery of prehabilitation. At the time our report was published, discussions are ongoing with Welsh Government about the long term sustainable funding and delivery of prehabilitation.. No matter what happens in the immediate future, prehabilitation is likely to become a permanent fixture of cancer policy in Wales.


Report recommendations:

Former prehabilitation patient, Phil Jones talks about his experience

All of the above recommendations will empower patients and allow them to take ownership of their cancer experience, leading to increased resilience to treatment and improvement of long-term health.

Greg Pycroft, Policy and Public Affairs Officer

Cancer can throw people’s lives upside down.  Often the greatest impact is not the treatment or the illness itself, but the life-changing side effects it can leave behind.

In our latest blog series, we tackle the ‘taboo’ subjects that every year leave thousands of people with cancer either too worried, or too embarrassed, to ask for the help they need.

A recent Macmillan poll suggests that sex and relationships are the number one taboo issue in Wales, with over half of people saying they would find it difficult to talk about.

Julie Armytage is a Macmillan Counsellor.  In the first of our cancer ‘taboo’ blogs, she explains why concerns over sex and intimacy should never be left unspoken.

Julie: I’ve been a Macmillan Counsellor now for over 4 years.  My job is to support people with the psychological and emotional impacts that cancer can have on their lives.

While the impacts of cancer are wide ranging, I know from experience just how unspoken and therefore unheard and unresolved, so many of these impacts can be.

As this recent Macmillan poll suggests, we know that sex and intimacy can feel like an uncomfortable or embarrassing subject for people to talk about.

Many people struggle to know who to turn to, and often find it difficult to open up to their loved ones in a frank and honest way.

No one should have to face this sense of loneliness or isolation without support.

Sex and intimacy are natural human emotions and functions.  They are an essential part of our lives.

Feeling unable to talk about intimacy following a cancer diagnosis and treatment runs the risk of creating so many further problems.

From the earliest stages of diagnosis, right the way through treatment and recovery, people with cancer are often at their most vulnerable. 

It is a situation in which the one thing that so many people with cancer are too embarrassed to talk about, is often the one thing they probably need more than ever.

They are right at the centre of an often-terrifying situation – a situation in which a sense of intimacy, a sense of comfort and confidence in their relationships, can do so much to help them through.

While sex and intimacy are not always talked about publicly – certainly not to the honest and open extent they should be – we do know it is often one of the most common issues created by cancer.

Whether it is through physical side-effects like impotence or incontinence, or through psychological issues like body image or depression, research suggests that around 43% of cancer patients believe their sex life has suffered because of their illness.

Feeling too embarrassed to talk about it can have a profound effect on people’s mental health, well-being and their ability to cope with their wider cancer experience.

That is why it is so important for people to speak out.

Cancer can not only have a negative impact on how you feel about sex and intimacy, and it can do so at a time when it is so important to be able to express love, closeness and feel comfort.

Help is available.  Help which will make it easier for people to adjust to the difficulties that cancer has left them with, and to deal with issues around body image, fatigue, a loss of desire or pain.

By talking about issues like sex and intimacy, people can work out how best to overcome the impact that cancer has had within their relationships.

It can help deal with issues like anger, anxiety and depression, as well as issues like guilt or grief.  In doing so it can help people shape their expectations around resuming or maintaining their sex life and rediscover that vital sense of intimacy and confidence with their loved ones.

The reality is that cancer can take a lot away from people.  It shouldn’t take their relationships as well.

Talking about sex and intimacy may not be easy, but it can do so much to help someone with their mental health, their emotional wellbeing and their self-esteem.  In doing so it can aid their wider recovery.

For information, support or just someone to talk to, call 0808 808 00 00 or visit macmillan.org.uk