Healthy Habits - 7. World Cancer Day

The theme for this year’s World Cancer Day is “United by unique”, with the aim of placing people at the centre of care and their stories at the heart of the conversation.

While I am lucky in that I haven’t received a diagnosis, cancer has been a part of my story for as long as I can remember.

For more than 30 years, my mam worked as a cancer nurse in various roles and hospitals, supporting patients and their loved ones at all stages of their cancer journeys.

While my mam did her best not to bring her work home with her, our family was impacted by cancer on multiple occasions.

Though I only found out years later, my grandma had been successfully treated for breast cancer before I knew what the word meant. I would even play catch with her false boob, oblivious to what it was for…

I had more of an understanding of the impact a diagnosis could have on the person and their family when my cousin was diagnosed at just 30 years old, and especially when she relapsed.

I felt the full impact of the disease when I lost my uncle in his early 50s, taken from us far too soon and far too quickly.

Though I knew what my mam did, and I’d seen the impact a diagnosis has on a family, the truth is I didn’t know a lot about cancer until she founded our charity in 2019.

Live Well with Cancer

To begin with, my main involvement with the charity was writing funding applications. I’d been successful in the past when applying to appear on game shows, and I was pleased to find that my skills transferred to bid writing.

Initially, most of the bids were to cover the session costs of workshops, events and support groups for anyone impacted by a cancer diagnosis, including family, friends, carers and healthcare professionals.

Weeks after becoming a charity specialising in in-person sessions, the Covid lockdowns meant we had to shift our sessions online. I even put my degree in English Literature & Creative Writing to good use to co-facilitate our Live Well Book Club and Creative Writing sessions.

It was during these latter sessions that I began to hear people’s stories, each united by a cancer diagnosis but unique to the individual.

For the past six years, I’ve continued to be amazed by the stories I’ve heard from the people of our community, and particularly since finding our home on Nile Street.

I’d always known my mam was doing important work, helping people to find their way at what is often the most difficult time of their life.

But there is a difference between knowing something instinctively and seeing it firsthand.

Now, every time I’m in the Live Well Hub, I see the impact she has had and the difference our charity makes to the people of our community.

Live Well Hub & Beyond

“Cancer is more than just a medical diagnosis – it’s a deeply personal matter.” – World Cancer Day

At Live Well with Cancer, we empower anyone impacted by a diagnosis to improve their health and wellbeing through proven techniques and peer support.

From the Live Well Hub and elsewhere in North Tyneside, we run a range of movement classes, arts and crafts sessions, and individual and group support to cater to the individual needs of the people in our community.

The project I’m most proud of is Live Well with Healthy Habits, a holistic approach to wellbeing that can help anyone to most positive lifestyle changes.

I’m looking forward to a busy schedule this year, including two Live Well with Healthy Habits Masterclasses and 12 regional Prehabilitation workshops. You can read more about the project here.

I’m also excited to share the work of the Live Well Writers with our upcoming Live Well with Stories anthology and The Story of Transformation writing resource.

Each week at the Live Well Hub, I have the pleasure of helping the Live Well Writers create fiction and non-fiction stories.

Last week, I set the task to write about World Cancer Day. A beloved regular of the group said that she didn’t want to write about her cancer anymore, having written about it in previous sessions.

I suggested she write about the positives that have come from her cancer diagnosis, and the friends she has made along the way, a thought that made the whole group smile.

While sadness is unavoidable given the nature of our work, I’ve also seen so much joy and laughter come from the connections made at the Live Well Hub.

If our community proves anything, it’s that, together, we can live well with cancer.