World Cancer Day: Reflecting on the improved experience provided for patients living with cancer

Patient Mandy Clarke with Deborah Stone, sister at The Williams Day Unit.

We are committed to supporting patients through the diagnosis and treatment of cancer with high quality care. On 4 February, we marked World Cancer Day by reflecting on the improved patient experience we have worked to provide throughout 2019. We continue to focus on enhancing the experience of patients with cancer, working to have faster pathways for diagnosis in particular for lung, oesophago-gastric, colorectal and prostate cancers. Teams across the hospital are dedicated to ensuring that patients receive a diagnosis at the earliest opportunity and are then supported holistically with the physical and emotional challenges that can present during treatment for cancer. Bernadette Roach, head of cancer, said:

World Cancer Day was an opportunity to raise awareness of the disease nationally, and we reflected on our continued work to enhance the services we provide for our patients with cancer. We are proud of our achievements, delivering a very high standard of cancer care for the people of west Essex, Hertfordshire, and beyond. One of our patients, Mandy Clarke, from Harlow, also took part in an information film to highlight the experience patients with cancer may have, which is available across our PAHT social media channels.

Mandy, who was diagnosed with cancer in June 2018, said:

I found the diagnosis quite scary, it was daunting, and you listen but you don’t hear and don’t take it in at first.

The team are great – it’s quite a happy place as patients who come in on a regular basis all get to know each other. It’s not a scary place to come.

As soon as you walk through the doors, you feel at ease. The whole place is a warm, happy place to be if you’re being treated for cancer.

This includes the team at The Williams Day Unit, which patients with cancer attend to receive chemotherapy treatment.