Our Charity
Once again we are please to be supporting The Teenage Cancer Trust as our chosen charity...
Teenage Cancer Trust
Every day in the UK, up to 6 teenagers or young adults (between the ages of 13 and 24) will find out they have cancer that is approximately 2,100 new cases a year. These young people, in the midst of their already difficult journey to adulthood, suddenly find themselves faced with a possible life-threatening illness and very often receiving treatment in inappropriate facilities with inadequate support options. Until the age of 16 a teenager is likely to be treated in a pediatric ward alongside toddlers. If the same teen was diagnosed after turning 16 then they are likely to end up in an adult ward with elderly patients. Many must put life on hold, just as it is starting to take off.
Cancer is more common than you think.
In either case the young person is being treated alongside people they can't fully relate to, and is outside the specialty of their doctors, nurses and hospital staff. Cancer in teenagers and young adults has a distinctive pattern and is different from that of children and older adults. It is important for their physical health and psychological well-being, that they be treated in a specialist facility that is built to meet their needs, and it is critical for their emotional well-being that they are treated in a comfortable environment where they have the opportunity to meet other people their age who understand what they are going through.
Young adults contract some of the most aggressive cancers, which can be made worse by their growth spurts. Yet because only 0.5% of all cancers occur in teenagers and young adults, they are often misdiagnosed initially-- decreasing their chances of survival, and excluding them from clinical trials. Even after finishing treatment, teens can struggle with personal and professional issues that are inadequately addressed.
Even after finishing treatment, teens can struggle with personal and professional issues that are inadequately addressed. There is a lack of ongoing support from the NHS and other services once treatment is finished and there can be difficulty pursuing a chosen career because they are considered a health risk. Insurers or pension schemes can be reluctant to provide cover, and ex-patients often find it a struggle to get a mortgage - the list goes on and on. Teenagers need support beyond treatment, and general awareness of the issues they face, to help them move forward.
Cancer is the most common cause of death at this age and is the most common cause of non-accidental death at this age. Incidence rates are now higher in teenagers and young adults than in children, yet survival rates fall behind those of children and older adults. Teenage Cancer Trust exists to ensure that teenagers and young adults are diagnosed efficiently, treated effectively, and have the support they need to make it through their treatment and rebuild their lives after cancer.
Services
TCT's top priority is building units in NHS hospitals specifically for teenagers with cancer. As well as superior medical facilities, these units are equipped with day rooms, kitchens and chill-out rooms where teenagers can relax and feel at home or have friends and family to visit in a comfortable environment. There are computers with internet access, pool tables, playstations, satellite TV, musical instruments, and other things teenagers might like to occupy their time with, or share with friends. Most importantly, the units provide an environment where teenagers can meet others in a similar situation and allow patients to build friendships and mechanisms to cope with their disease.
The hospital staff on these units are devoted to treating teenagers with cancer, and TCT funds activities coordinators in some units to help patients cope with their disease and pass the time in hospital. These units cost upwards of 2 million each to build, and TCT has built 8 around the UK so far. We estimate that to reach our goal of giving every teenager with cancer in the UK access to treatment in a specialist unit, we will need to build at least 15 more.
Everything TCT does is to improve the quality of life and chances of survival for teenagers and young adults who have been diagnosed with cancer.
What Does it Cost to Build a Unit?
- £100,000 to fully equip a patients bedroom. This includes: an electric bed; interactive patient-controlled computer systems providing lighting control, web access, DVD download facility, networked with other patients rooms, school and home; en suite bathroom; parents bed settee and furnishings.
- £50,000 Chill out room - a therapeutic environment including music system, interactive lighting controls, aromatherapy facilities
- £50,000 Music room, including music mixing equipment, a synthesiser and musical instruments for music therapy.
- £25,000 Salary and expenses of Education and Awareness Officer for educational input to schools and universities
- £20,000 Fitted kitchen diner for teenagers
- £20,000 1 years salary and costs for an Activity Co-ordinator to help young people remain positive and occupied during lengthy hospital treatment
- £10,000 Furnishing parents lounge/diner
- £7,000 Production of schools information pack and mail-out to 7000 schools and universities
- £2,500 Computer system
- £2,000 Patient controlled electric bed, essential during periods of critical illness
- £1,600 Laptop computer
- £1,000 Music Centre
- £1,000 Flat screen TV
- £650 Bed settee for relatives to stay overnight
Statistics
- Each day in the UK, 6 teenagers are diagnosed with cancer that is over 2,000 new cases every year.
- Cancer is the most common cause of non-accidental death in teens and young adults in the UK.
- 1 in 330 boys and 1 in 420 girls will contract cancer before their 20th birthday.
- By the age of 15 you have a 1 in 600 chance of developing cancer. By the age of 24 you will have had a 1 in 285 chance of developing cancer.
- In the last 30 years the incidence of cancer in the teenage and young adult group has increased by 50% and for the first time ever, the number of teens with cancer now exceeds the number of children with cancer.
- Teenagers contract some of the most aggressive cancers that are made worse by their growth spurts.
