Yorkshire Macmillan team praised for ‘life-changing’ care | News

The Macmillan team at Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust have been applauded for their vital support to patients with cancer and their families by Tracey, whose family first accessed the service eight years ago.

Rushed to Pinderfields Hospital with suspected organ failure in 2016, Tracey was unexpectedly diagnosed with secondary breast cancer at just 47 years old.

Tracey’s husband, Chris, who remained by her bedside for over 12 hours a day, was able to access support from the Macmillan team at Pinderfields on practicalities such as car parking, free prescriptions, and emotional support, aspects which can generally feel overwhelming in an already difficult and worrying time for families.

Tracey said, “When you're going through cancer treatment, you think you are the only person going through it and it can feel really isolating. But Macmillan have so much experience to make life a little bit easier for people with cancer and their families.

“Because of them, our family has been able to move forward, and I am able to live with cancer. And for that, I thank them dearly.”

To give something back, Tracey and her family have raised an impressive £27,500 for Macmillan over the last eight years. Alongside various coffee mornings and cycling events, in 2017, Tracey’s husband, Chris, and their two sons, Daniel and Matthew, who were aged 19 and 17 at the time, completed the mammoth task of cycling from Yorkshire to Paris and back, a total of 880 miles in five days and participating in the Paris Marathon on the third day. Following the national lockdown, in August 2021, Tracey’s family organised and took part in a ‘Yorkshire pudding run’, including people taking part in running and cycling events to raise over £5,480 for Macmillan.

 

 

Stacey Rhodes, Senior Relationship Fundraising Manager at Macmillan Cancer Support said: “At Macmillan, we want to say a big thank you to Tracey and her incredible family for their amazing fundraising activities over the past eight years!

“We are hugely grateful for their efforts to raise vital funds for Macmillan. Every penny raised helps us provide crucial support for people living with cancer across the UK, who need us now more than ever.”