Welcome to another blog post from Matthew McKenzie (who runs the London Cancer carer group) advocating for cervical cancer awareness, prevention, and support in 2025. In this blog you can learn about screenings, HPV vaccinations, and the crucial role of caregivers in the fight against cervical cancer.
To watch the 3 minute Cervical Cancer Awareness Month 2025 video, please click below.
Addressing health disparities, especially for patients with serious mental illness (SMI), is crucial in improving cancer treatment outcomes. This post by Matthew Mckenzie who facilitates the National cancer carer forum explores the multifaceted challenges faced by this vulnerable group and the necessary steps to tackle these inequalities.
To watch the video regarding Cancer and Serious Mental Illness, please click below.
Before continuing with the post, South East London Cancer Alliance. have just released their Cancer And Serious Mental Illness Information Resource. These have been co-created by SELCA, South London & Maudsley and the HIN, while working closely with people with lived experience of cancer and serious mental illnesses. You can visit and see the resources here: https://www.selca.nhs.uk/patients-and-carers/cancer-and-serious-mental-illness
The following sections might be of particular interest as they focus on cancer risks and screening.
Continue readingWelcome to a brief update from Carer activist Matthew McKenzie on the national cancer carer forum.
This group is online and is a mix of a peer group and engagement for those who care for someone with cancer.
Quick update for the Cancer carer group October 2024
Matthew, a mental health advocate, hosted the National Cancer Carers Forum and discussed the challenges of being a cancer caregiver, emphasizing the importance of understanding the diagnosis and treatment plan, seeking support, and planning for the future.
Also discussed was practical day-to-day care for someone undergoing cancer treatment, the importance of self-reflection and mental health support for carers, and the need for caregivers to advocate for patients and manage potential side effects of treatments. The conversation ended with requests for future discussions on accessing clinical trials, supporting caregivers’ mental health, and guidance on what to do if the primary caregiver is unavailable.
Understanding Diagnosis and Treatment Plans
Matthew discussed the importance of understanding the diagnosis and treatment plan for a loved one, particularly in mental health cases. He emphasized the need to be aware of any side effects from medication or treatment and to relay these concerns to the healthcare professionals. Matthew also mentioned the potential for a future session focusing on engaging with the NHS professionals and understanding who to ask questions to at different stages of the cancer journey.
Cancer Caregiving, Self-Reflection, and Planning
Matthew discussed the importance of self-reflection and planning for future recovery and well-being, particularly in the context of cancer caregiving. He emphasized the need for mental health support for cancer carers emotional struggles and the importance of setting goals and monitoring changes in the condition of the loved one. Matthew also stressed the importance of educating oneself about the cancer condition and seeking support from different groups. He suggested that training and workshops could be beneficial for gaining insight and planning for the future
Caregiver Challenges and Emotional Support
Matthew discussed the challenges faced by caregivers in advocating for patients and managing potential side effects of treatments. He suggested that caregivers should attend medical appointments to stay informed and asked for questions to be emailed to him for further research. Matthew also emphasized the importance of emotional support for both the patient and the caregiver, suggesting that caregivers should be sensitive to the patient’s feelings and avoid constant positivity. He mentioned that he would run a group again in the next month to further discuss these topics.
This concludes the brief update of the National cancer care group for October
Here I present some practical ways to manage guilt for those who are caring for someone with cancer. From accepting emotions to joining support groups, empower yourself to handle challenges with compassion and resilience.
If you wish to watch the video version of this blog (3 minutes) then click below.
Caring for someone with cancer is a role laden with emotional challenges, and feelings of guilt are often a frequent companion on this journey. Whether it’s self-imposed pressure to be perfect or the overwhelming desire to alleviate your loved one’s suffering, guilt can overshadow the invaluable service you are providing. Here, I present some strategies to help you manage and navigate these difficult emotions, ensuring you maintain your well-being along with providing care.
The first step in managing guilt is accepting that it is a completely normal emotion for caregivers. Understanding that you are not alone in feeling this way can make a significant difference. Accepting your emotions rather than suppressing or ignoring them is crucial for a healthier caregiving experience.
Finding someone to talk to can be incredibly therapeutic. This confidant could be a friend, family member, or even someone within a support group. Sharing your emotions not only lightens the burden but also offers you different perspectives and support.
Consulting with a therapist who specializes in caregiver issues can provide you with invaluable coping strategies. This professional guidance offers a safe space to express your feelings without judgment and equips you with tools to handle your emotions better.
Guilt often arises from feeling powerless over the situation. Shifting your focus towards aspects of caregiving that you can control helps in mitigating these feelings. Concentrate on the quality of care you provide instead of focusing on the uncontrollable aspects of the illness.
Treat yourself with the same compassion and kindness you would offer a friend in a similar situation. Recognize your humanity; you can’t be perfect, and that’s completely okay. Acknowledge your efforts and small victories rather than focusing solely on your perceived shortcomings.
Setting realistic and achievable goals for your caregiving duties can significantly reduce feelings of inadequacy. Break tasks into manageable steps and celebrate each accomplishment, no matter how small. This can bolster your confidence and lessen the weight of guilt.
Self-care is not selfish; it is a crucial aspect of caregiving. Make time for yourself, whether it involves engaging in a hobby, exercising, or simply resting. Recharging your mental and physical batteries will make you a more effective caregiver.
Gaining a deeper understanding of your loved one’s medical condition can enhance your competence and reduce feelings of guilt. Knowledge empowers you to provide better care and allows you to feel more confident in your caregiving decisions.
Take time to reflect on the positive impact you have on your loved one’s life. Celebrating small victories and moments of joy can serve as a reminder of the important role you play. These moments can counterbalance feelings of guilt and provide emotional upliftment.
Support groups are invaluable. Connecting with others who are experiencing similar situations provides a sense of belonging and validation. Sharing experiences and realizations can offer immense relief and new strategies to cope with guilt.
Writing down your feelings can serve as an excellent outlet to process and understand your emotional state better. Journaling allows you to articulate your thoughts and feelings, reducing the burden of carrying them around unspoken.
Understanding and respecting your own limits is crucial for sustainable caregiving. Clearly communicate your boundaries to those involved in the caregiving process. This protects your energy and ensures you don’t overextend yourself, which can exacerbate feelings of guilt.
No one is perfect, and mistakes are part of the caregiving journey. Instead of being overly critical of yourself, view mistakes as learning opportunities. Allow yourself to grow from these experiences rather than letting them compound your guilt.
By integrating these strategies into your caregiving routine, you can work through feelings of guilt and find a more balanced emotional state. Remember, you are doing an incredible job. Caring for yourself is just as important as caring for your loved one. Stay strong, and give yourself grace along this challenging yet rewarding journey.
Welcome back to another blog update from Carer Activist Matthew McKenzie, who also runs the National Cancer Carer forum.
As usual I raise awareness of unpaid care, but because of the forum that I run, I was invited to attend Macmillan Cancer Support Community network conference. The event took place on the 22nd of October over at Oxo Tower
Macmillan Cancer Support is one of the largest British charities and provides specialist health care, information and financial support to people affected by cancer and those who support them. The charity also looks at the social, emotional and practical impact cancer can have, and campaigns for better cancer care.
There are several Macmillan Cancer communities, I am part of the London Cancer community network. Basically The London Cancer Community is a network of people who work or live in London who are either are living with, recovering from or have recovered from cancer; their friends, family and carers, healthcare professionals, community organisations, cancer charities and initiatives.
The Cancer community conference looked to celebrate the projects from network partners, raise awareness, network and also feedback.
The overall agenda was as follows
Registration from Macmillian staff who were friendly and polite. I felt to welcome attending the event. Plus I managed to grab some healthy breakfast as I was late arriving to the conference. So it was great to be well fed. I then managed to networking and browse some stalls. I was also joined by fellow carer activist Nadia Taylor who chairs the carer charity “Carers Network”.
It was not long before we were ushered to our tables to hear about the importance of the event and the agenda for the day.
Then there were presentations from the following charities, health providers and campaigners.
Can you ‘C’ me – Croydon BME Forum
The Beauty of Support and Barbers Against Prostate Cancer
Samina Hussain – Sakoon Through Cancer
Judith Neptial – From me to you: the art of survival
Macmillan Quality of Life and Personalised Care Community Reach Programme
UCLPartners and Macmillan – The Improving Cancer Journey’s Learning Programme
I spent a lot of time catching up with links to Cancer alliances as they support the group I am running, although my focus is with RM Partners who focus on South West and North West London. I also linked up with the Cancer Alliance the provides services to the North East of London.
Overall I was glad to attend this wonderful conference, it was a shame I could not stay long as I headed off to run my carer stall at Queen Elizabeth Hospital over in Greenwich. I often get visitors to the hospital seeking advice and information due to caring for someone with cancer.
My final thoughts on the event was on the amount of hard work to put the conference together. The conference felt like it was forming a community of those who did all they can to support the health of the community. I cannot wait till the next conference.
Please check out Macmillan Cancer Support community network newsletter below.
As a carer of lived experience, I have always found it important to seek information to help my caring role. My caring duties are not so heavy now, but there is expectation to share knowledge.
I helped and supported a dear old friend living with cancer and since it is Breast Cancer Awareness month. I want to support those caring for someone with Breast cancer.
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and being part of the Macmillan Cancer Support network, I want to raise awareness.
Obviously my focus is on cancer caregivers and I have included the video below to provide “Top 10 tips for supporting someone with Breast Cancer”.
Welcome back to another blog poster from Matthew McKenzie, carer activist and a member of the Macmillan Cancer Community Network. I chair the National Cancer carer forum aimed at those caring for someone living with cancer.
if you struggle with caring for someone with cancer. As carers, we never want to see our loved ones struggle. But caring for someone with cancer can be incredibly frightening. It’s hard to be strong for them if you’re struggling too. That’s why it’s so important to identify yourself as a carer.
Feel free to watch the short carer awareness video I made below.
By registering at your doctor’s surgery, a carer centre, or a Macmillan Cancer Support group, you can access the support you need. Get the help you deserve. Remember, you’re not alone in this. By identifying yourself as a carer, you’re opening the door to resources, advice, and a community that understands what you’re going through.
You can also register for my online group, that runs the last Wednesday of the month.
Click this link to book for the group
Take that step today. For yourself, and for your loved one. You’re doing an amazing role. Get yourself supported every step of the way.
Welcome back to another blog post from Matthew McKenzie. As a facilitator of many carer groups. I run the London cancer carer forum, which will soon become national. The online group runs the last wednesday of the month and those interested can find out more off Macmillan cancer support website.
Macmillan Cancer Support – London Cancer carer forum
This post is about seeking support when overwhelmed with emotions as a cancer caregiver.
It can be such a shock when finding out someone you love has been diagnosed with cancer. Waves of difficult emotions can flood the carer and it can be so easy to go under.
It is important carers find ways to talk about their thoughts and feelings. I have made a video, which you can watch below.
I hope those coping with their caring role can learn a few tips on seeking support. It is important cancer caregivers get support for themselves as well.
Thanks for watching and reading.
Welcome back to a quick blog from Matthew McKenzie – Carer activist. What is a carer activist you may ask? Basically, I campaign to raise awareness of unpaid carers caring for someone going through long term illness. The bonus is that I have lived experience of providing unpaid care and support to someone close with mental illness.
I also provided care and support to a dear old friend who I have known for many years. He suffered from cancer in the later stages of his life and when he passed away, I was left with a gift to raise awareness from writing books.
Just last week I came across a report on how UK cancer care ‘lags behind’ other countries.
Taken from the sky news report “The latest figures for NHS England show that some 76.3% of patients urgently referred for suspected cancer in June were diagnosed or had cancer ruled out within 28 days – above the target of 75%.”
You can read the report below.
As facilitator of the London Cancer carer forum, it is depressing news to hear the UK lagging behind. While the someone living with cancer is desperate for treatment, the family or close friend are also anxiously waiting.
It is important the Department of Health and Social Care reform their 10 year plan for the NHS and be inclusive with patient and carer voices.
Going back to my books. I have just published my first book on the experience of cancer caregiving. The book focuses on the following chapters.
Chapter 1: The experience of cancer caregiving
How carers may feel when they find out that someone close has been diagnosed with cancer
Chapter 2: The battle begins
What is expected of the cancer caregiver
Chapter 3: Battling for you
Avoiding being lost in the maze
Chapter 4: Getting involved through lived experience
Inspiring cancer caregivers to get involved in shaping health services
Chapter 5: Looking back
Not caring forever, so we eventually have to look back.
The book will be promoted slowly as you never know I probably will have to adapt or change a few things. You can get hold of the book on Amazon.
We dont often always notice, but behind someone diagnosed with cancer is usually a close relative or friend. Often we focus on what support can be provided to the cancer patient. The person affected by this awful disease can be fighting for their very life and will need all the support they can get.
but what about the cancer caregiver?
All too often we may forget that the carer will need support for themselves as well. It might not even dawn upon cancer carers as they focus all their efforts on caring for their loved one. It might be a partner caring for their other partner, a young carer supporting their parent. Or even a parent caring for an elderly relative. The caring situations can be long, complex and emotionally trying.
The situation above and many other reasons are why we need to raise awareness for cancer caregivers. It can be so easy to be hidden as a carer and hope for the best. Just because the carer is not suffering the physical and emotional affects of cancer, does not mean they should not be given support.
With Cancer Support Macmillan being the UK’s leading charities fighting against cancer, I help raise awareness of families affected by Cancer. Cancer is not contagious, but anxiety, uncertainty and depression cancer brings will affect those close by.
Not everyone will think of themselves as a carer, they are more than happy to focus all their efforts just so their loved ones see another day. It is so important we stress to someone caring that they do have access to support and this includes their carer’s rights.
No one should have to give care if it makes their quality of life suffer. Those caring for someone might need emotional support. They might even need their caring situation assessed, especially if the carer is unable to work. Some people caring for someone with cancer might actually need time off for work to support the cancer patient. This links to carer’s rights at work.
With the London Cancer carer forum, which I run online for the last Wednesday of the month. I seek to bring cancer carers together to hear experiences and feedback. Caring for someone with cancer is not the same as caring for someone with a broken leg. Sometimes we need to be heard by those who just “Get it!”. Cancer carers will not feel judged or feel as if they let someone down. Caring for someone without being heard or being connected can lead to isolation. Carers can feel they are coping by themselves without an outlet so it is important a group can provide some peer support.
If carer isolation was not the main issue, then there is advocacy and navigating the health and social care system. Not everyone will be skilled on knowing who to ask and what to ask if their caring role changes. Advocacy and health system guidance can be useful when a carer does not know where to turn. It is important carers have a chance to be referred to local support and be assessed on challenges in their role.
Cancer is one of the most difficult and damaging illness to impact friends and families. It could happen to any of us and it is so important we get the knowledge to lessen the impact. Please check out Macmillan’s London Cancer Community Newsletter for August 2024 for more information about Matthew McKenzie’s Cancer carer group and other cancer support initiatives below.
A Caring Mind 