Published on: 23 October 2025
A team from South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust (STSFT) has been recognised for its work supporting people living with incurable cancer.
The Living with Cancer project team won the “Championing the Patient Voice” award at the Northern Cancer Alliance (NCA) Awards 20205. These awards celebrate the individuals, teams and services making a significant impact in transforming cancer care across the region.
The project focuses on improving the lives of the growing number of people living with treatable but not curable cancer. It brings patients, carers and professionals together to reimagine what supportive care should look like.
Sadly, both locally and nationally, there remains a gap in consistent provision for this growing group of patients. Particularly in areas like symptom management, psychological wellbeing and coordinated care planning.
Caroline Tweedie, Macmillan Lead Cancer Nurse at STSFT, said: “Thirty per cent of new diagnoses of cancer at STSFT are classified as incurable. Due to a significant increase in treatment options, many of these patients are living with incurable cancer for years and sometimes decades. Their treatment regimens can be complex. Leading to significant physical and psychological toxicities. These patients need coordinated and ongoing support. For us, this project isn’t just about improving services. It’s rewriting the narrative around incurable cancer. It’s helping people to live fully, with dignity, support and hope.”
The NCA commended the team’s commitment to co-production and partnership working.
Key achievements include:
- Co-designing a new diagnosis leaflet for patients with incurable cancer.
- Shaping how cancer nurse specialists approach care planning and sensitive conversations.
- Partnering with local fitness centres to deliver wellbeing programmes in underserved communities.
- Embedding culturally sensitive approaches and launching targeted awareness campaigns to support women from ethnic communities.
- Establishing a staff working group to co-design inclusive cancer education aimed at early detection and reducing stigma.
- Supporting Enhanced Supportive Care Clinics, offering holistic assessments and a single point of contact for patients.
- Developing education programmes that build staff confidence and capability in supporting patients with incurable conditions.
The awards were presented by Dr Ian Pedley, Clinical Director for Secondary Care at NCA, and Prof Peter Johnson, National Clinical Director for Cancer at NHS England.
Dr Pedley said: "It was an incredibly difficult decision selecting the winners and I, on behalf of the NCA, would like to congratulate them and thank them for the dedication and commitment they show to our patients.”
