Community News - Macmillan Online Community

“It was a surreal experience” - Lesley’s story

After her breast cancer diagnosis six months ago, there was a lot Lesley wasn’t expecting about her own experiences of cancer treatment and recovery. She also wasn’t expecting how much strength she would find in herself, and unexpected places. Lesley talks about her experience with diagnosis, cancer care, breast cancer surgery, radiotherapy, follow-up and recovery in today’s guest blog. Six months ago, I was told the news I had breast cancer... the wind physically left my lungs. I was alone when I got the news. This was for two reasons. Firstly, I thought it was yet another benign pesky cyst and it was a minor irritation and two - it was in the middle of a pandemic. The lovely consultant took my hand, looked me in my eyes and said, “I’ll make sure you’re ok.” I could’ve hugged him, but I…

Eliza - Macmillan
Prostate Cancer Information

We know from listening to our members that the amount of information to take in when you first get a cancer diagnosis can be overwhelming. It can affect everyone within a family as well as friends, alongside the patient. In today’s Community News Blog, we’re looking to help by providing clear and concise information on one type of cancer – prostate cancer. “Think everyone here can associate with the overwhelming emotions that come with a cancer diagnosis in a family ” court, Bowel cancer forum. Go to discussion . We wanted to start with a video that explains what prostate cancer is and the main types, risk factors, stages and common treatments available. www.youtube.com/watch Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men in the UK, around 80% of 80-year-old men have prostate…

Tom C - Macmillan
Overcoming smear fear with the Online Community

Many people worry about attending cervical screening appointments, due to anxiety, existing health worries and concerns about the procedure. It’s ok to feel a range of emotions including embarrassment, and by being a member of our Community cancer forums you’ll probably find that you’re not alone in feeling this way. It can be helpful to have the factual information about what to expect and our ‘ Cervical cancer prevention blog ’ has some helpful information about why it’s important to attend and keep up to date with Cervical screening appointments. This blog highlights the reassuring voice of our Community members and the support that’s offered to each other when talking about cervical screening. So if you’re feeling anxious or worried about an upcoming Cervical screening appointment,…

Megan- Macmillan
Men's Health Awareness Week - Dan wants you to douche it

Did you know that it’s Men’s Health Awareness Week 14 th - 20 th June 2021? The recent Macmillan campaign ‘ Tell Us The Score’ explained that men represent 51% of people diagnosed with cancer, but that only 37% of the calls to the Macmillan Support Line come from men. Similarly, members of the Community are less likely to be men. This means that men are missing out and aren’t asking for, or getting, the essential support they need from us. We want to encourage men to start opening up about cancer and ask for support if you need it. You might worry about how your diagnosis will affect your loved ones. You may have questions about your rights at work, your symptoms, or your money worries. Or you might want someone to talk to, even though you feel under pressure to ‘man up’ and stuff your…

Steph - Macmillan
Our members are here for you

Today we wanted to take some time to highlight the amazing support that our members provide to one another each and every day here on the Community. Whether you need practical info on what others found useful to bring along to treatment, information on what support is out there, or simply someone to share how your day’s been with, our Community cancer forum is here for you. No matter what has brought you to the site, no matter how cancer has affected your life, our members will support you through, and the kindness of strangers soon becomes the kindness of friends. Here on the team we know how amazing each of our Community members are at supporting one another, but we wanted to let the below quotes speak for themselves. “You are probably on the ceiling at the moment and don’t know which…

Former Member
Sunita’s experience with post-surgical menopause, chemotherapy and hair loss.

Sunita was diagnosed with Ovarian cancer and is sharing her experience with post-surgical menopause, chemotherapy and coping with her changing body image. There can be a whole range of things to consider when you go through treatment and everybody’s experience is so unique to them. Different aspects of body image are often talked about on the Community and Sunita is sharing her personal journey in the hope it can help you. As a trained makeup artist, Sunita also shares some of the things she did which you may find helpful. My whole world – and plans for a family – were shattered in April 2016, when I was suddenly diagnosed with ovarian cancer, having shown no previous symptoms of the disease. Cancer is still stigmatised in the Asian community, from my experience, with many people unwilling…

Megan- Macmillan
The Visit - coping with bereavement

Photo taken by David We are back today with the 4 th volume of our bereavement series. This series aims to shine a light on some important topics and key experiences that people may go through when they have lost a loved one to cancer. We began our bereavement series with the aim to normalise discussions around death, dying, and what comes after. Even though these kinds of discussions can be incredibly difficult, talking more openly about these experiences can help patients and loved ones find the right support to suit them in end of life and throughout bereavements. Grief, and what you may go through after someone close to you has passed away, can be a really difficult topic to talk about. It can be especially difficult if you have been recently bereaved, but by sharing experiences on…

Former Member
Here's to our Champions this Volunteers' week!

The 1 st – 7 th of June 2021 marks Volunteers week here at Macmillan. This is a week dedicated to saying a huge thank you to all of our volunteers who dedicate their time to supporting people affected by cancer. Here on the Community team we wanted to dedicate today’s Community news blog to our very own group of fantastic volunteers, our ‘Community Champions!’ If you’re new to the site, you might not know what a Community Champion is, but you’ve more than likely spoken to one of our wonderful Champions, as part of their role is to help welcome new members to our Community cancer forum . The easiest way to spot one of our Community Champions’ posts on the site is by their signature. Each of our Champions has a version of the below badge in their Community signature which will appear under…

Former Member
Cancer & me 35 years on - Hong Kong and Back to reality

Photo of the ruins of St. Paul's in Macau, China taken by Willo. We are back today with the next instalment of Willo’s blog series ‘Cancer & me 35 years on’. Willo is a member of our Community who was diagnosed with Anal cancer in 1986 while living in Zambia and has been sharing her experience of living through and beyond cancer, as well as her amazing artwork and photographs, in her blog series with us since last summer. So far Willo has covered her experience of moving back to England for treatment, her Abdominoperineal Resection , going back to art school post-surgery and the amazing friends and family that helped her through. In today’s blog we are back with Willo today to hear about her experience of traveling to Hong Kong in 1990 during a difficult time for her health. “After the…

Former Member
Being bodies - breast cancer and wearing a breast prosthesis

Sapphie, also known on the Online Community as , was diagnosed with breast cancer at just 32. Sapphie talks us through their experience trying several different types of prosthetics following their breast cancer surgery in the 1990s, and how humour has helped them and their family over the years. I was diagnosed when I was 32 years old, after finding a lump and being told by a consultant I was too young to have breast cancer and was sent on my way. A few months later we moved to a new area. My new doctor referred me to a consultant took the lump seriously, and I was diagnosed with primary breast cancer. I had a radical mastectomy on the right and given options of further reconstruction in the future (this was normal in the 90s). I had a concave chest on the left, which caused a lot of laughter…

Eliza - Macmillan
Skin cancer and Melanoma signs and symptoms check

You may have seen Steph’s recent blog about Sun awareness month and the practical tips to help keep yourself safe in the sun and ways to adapt to sun exposure. After reading this, you may have thought that you’re doing everything you can to protect yourself, but you’re concerned and worried about a new dark spot or mole lesions on your skin. As it’s Melanoma month, we want to share information about what you can do to check for signs and symptoms of Skin cancer and Melanoma. Skin cancer and melanoma- how do I check for signs and symptoms? About half of all melanomas start with a new, abnormal-looking mole in normal-looking skin. This usually looks like a dark area or a new mole that changes over weeks or months. Other symptoms of melanoma develop from a mole that you already have. It’s…

Megan- Macmillan
Self-management for your own health and healthcare

Managing your own care can be necessary when dealing with a long-term health condition or illness, such as some cancers. It can be overwhelming to think about at first, especially when you might have been recently diagnosed. Learning more about self-management for your own health can help you at any stage of your experience with cancer. This can mean understanding your condition and what you might need, decision making, and knowing where to get help when you need it. We’ve created some quick links to help you to get to what you’re looking for: Understanding your diagnosis and side effects Managing treatment – appointments and medication Managing lifestyle changes – diet, work, finances Understanding your diagnosis and side effects Understanding your diagnosis and treatment…

Eliza - Macmillan

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