Thanks to charitable donations made to the Cancer Centre, we are pleased to announce the launch of two support groups for patients receiving treatment at the MKUH Cancer Centre.
Donations and fundraising in aid of the cancer centre funds many different items – including comfortable, reclining chemotherapy chairs, extra special medical equipment, maintaining the three courtyard gardens and – in this case – funding the costs to run support groups for cancer patients.
Macmillan Wellbeing Nurse Fay Grech-Marguerat oversees the groups, which take place each month. She says:
“The Wellbeing Support Group meets monthly and provides support and information to people affected by any type of cancer. It’s welcoming, inclusive and members provide each other with peer support also, which we’ve been told is so valuable.”
Fay also runs a choir called Beyond the C. She says;
“The Beyond the C choir is for people affected by cancer in MK and surrounding areas. All are welcome, whether an experienced opera singer or someone who just sings in the shower! The group meets monthly and has such a lovely atmosphere. Patients get so much from it too.”
Some of the comments we’ve received from people who attend the groups include:
“Meeting at the Peartree Centre removes cancer patients from medical surroundings where we have had operations and treatment sometimes on a monumental scale. It is a place where we can talk, laugh and forget our cancer journeys because we understand each other and can just enjoy ourselves and our lives. It means so much to us all.”
“I would like to say how much we all gain from the Beyond the C singing group held at the Peartree Centre. Cancer is such a shock diagnosis for so many of us (mine was in 2014 and again in 2016). From a feeling of loss and hopelessness it is so good to receive mutual support; sharing a love of singing and laughing (thank you Fay!) which raises our spirits every time we meet. Carry on the great work.”
“I lost my partner to cancer after 26 years together and when I found the patient cancer choir it changed my life. The choir helped me through the worst times. It is very uplifting to sing with these people. We laugh together, sometimes we cry together and Fay is wonderful. I wish we could meet more often.”
Thank you so much to everyone who has supported the charity so we can provide patients with a regular, dedicated space to meet and talk.
If you would like to help us support cancer patients at Milton Keynes University Hospital you can make a donation to the Cancer Centre here.
