Published on: 9 October 2023
An online hub that gives expert advice and support to patients living with cancer or facing a diagnosis, is marking its first anniversary.
The Cancer Information Hub, developed by the team at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, has already helped thousands of patients and those who support to access trusted information about all aspects of cancer.
The hub was created by members of the Cancer Team and Macmillan service. It features 50-plus films covering a range of subjects.
This includes care and treatments, the role of a Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) and an insight into trials and genetics, with a series of podcasts recorded.
Pages cover subjects such as how to access emotional support, how to handle the fear of cancer returning and nutrition and skincare.
Patients have also shared their own stories, while the site signposts to other organisations which can help.
Video tours of hospital departments can help prepare people before a visit, while a district nurse explains how their team helps out in the community.
The hub looks at issues impacting different ages, benefits help and has information tailored to the Black, Asian and minority ethnic community.
The trust diagnoses around 200 patients each month with cancer. Since it launched a year ago the hub’s pages have received more than 14,000 views.
It was created with the help of patients and put to the test to the test by volunteers and former patients.
Nahida Aktar, the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Macmillan Project Co-ordinator at Sunderland Bangladesh International Centre in Hendon, also provided feedback.
Kelly Craggs, the Trust’s Macmillan Cancer Lead Nurse, and her team have overseen the hub’s development. It has been backed by the Northern Cancer Alliance.
She said:
"We are really pleased with the success of the Cancer Information Hub so far. Patients have so many questions when they receive a diagnosis. To have one place where they can find all the information they need take a great deal of stress away from them.
"We know that too much information at any one time can often make people feel overwhelmed or confused. This site will be there for them whenever they need answers from trusted experts who are involved in their care."
Bethan Cawley, 57, from Sunderland, is among those who have found the advice a help.
She was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL) when she was 49. Her first symptoms were a sore throat and a swelling on her neck.
Bethan Cawley has been among the patients to use the site to seek information.
The primary school teacher, who is married with three sons and two granddaughters, lives with the disease.
Bethan, who is a member of a choir and loves to sew and bake, turned to search engines to seek information following her diagnosis, but did not find sites that were a help or comfort.
She said:
"I think, had this been around six or seven years ago, from my referral to being told of my diagnosis and then after that, it would have helped fill those gaps.
"It’s set up very well, because it takes you straight to the information about your specific condition, details on how to access Macmillan, counselling and it talks about emotions. All of this is so helpful.
"What I like most about it is that this initiative comes from my hospital. It’s where I’m treated and this comes from the staff who care for me. I trust them 100%, so I know all of this information is right for me as a patient.
"A search engine such as Google can be a wealth of information but it has to be the correct information.
"Accessing trusted sites via the hub allows for trusted information and access to sites, which my team are fully aware of and endorse. The hub refines the search and focuses on your specific needs.
"You can read it at your own pace and in your own time."
The hub can be found by clicking here.
