Shine London are a friendly group of adults with cancer who meet up once a month in London to spend time with other people who just ‘get it’. Our meet ups change monthly and we do a variety of activities such as, pubs, cafe’s, walks, craft, meals, etc. We’re run by volunteer Network Leaders who have their own diagnosis and we would love new people to come along and join us!
To find out about our next event please click below or drop the London Network an email at london@shinecancersupport.org. We’d love to hear from you!
Meet London’s volunteer network leader, Jess!
“I’m Jess, and I joined the Shine London team in 2017 as I wanted to help more people like me through the amazing work Shine Cancer Support does. I was lucky to find Shine two months after I was diagnosed with a really rare, chronic, non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2015 called Waldenströms Macroglobulinaemia. My cancer is most common in elderly men – not my people! The problems that I was facing (fertility, dating, paying a mortgage, working full time etc) didn’t affect them and I felt totally lost – until I found Shine. Through Shine I’ve met other young people with chronic cancer, and made some incredible friendships. I no longer feel alone, and I know that whatever my treatment throws at me, one of my Shine friends will have been there already. Chronic cancers are quite different, and although my cancer is incurable, it is treatable. I live with inflammatory arthritis, fibromyalgia, ulcerative colitis and depression too, so sometimes I practically live at my local hospital! I’ve finished 2.5 years of chemo and am now back on “watch and wait”. Cancer will always be part of my life, and through my work as a network leader, I hope to help other young people get the support they need from people who really ‘get it’.”
Meet London’s volunteer network leader, Alison!
I was diagnosed with hormone-receptive stage 3 breast cancer when I was 31. I had multiple surgeries and chemotherapy, and am now living with all the marvellous side effects of the medicines hopefully keeping my cancer away. Everyone thinks my treatment ended when my hair grew back, but the post chemo-stage has actually been harder in many ways, especially with returning to work and trying to have a social life once more. The Shine “cancer club” get it and are always there to support each other, and I hope as a network leader I can pass this support on to more people.”
Meet London’s volunteer network leader, Will!
Receiving a cancer diagnosis as a young person comes at a heavy cost for your social life, particularly in somewhere like London. But by providing a wonderful supportive community of people who just ‘get it’, I’ve seen first-hand what a fantastic role Shine plays in filling this gap for young people.
It’s both a pleasure and an honour to help deliver this support as a London Network Leader. Shine’s community is as friendly and welcoming a group of people as you’ll ever find, and above all our meet ups are always a lot of fun! I hope I’ll see you at one of our events soon.”
Meet London’s volunteer network leader, Quinn!
Meet London’s volunteer network leader, Cate!
“Hi, I’m Cate and I was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma when I was 25. I had an intensive chemotherapy regime for 6 months as a day patient. I found that many of the teenage/young people cancer services have a cut off of age 25 – which is completely understandable but meant I was always the youngest person on the oncology unit and until I lost my hair, I was occasionally mistaken for a visitor!
Emotionally and personally I was dealing with very different issues to the ones the staff were used to seeing, such as starting chemo while living in a rented flat share, not having a car or a live-in partner. The first event I attended was the 2019 Connect where it was validating to not feel like I was the only person dealing with these issues. As a network leader, I hope to be able to extend that support and network to more young people who need it, while also having a good time together!”