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KEEPING YOU UPDATED
Welcome to our Cancer Voices newsletter. This is our way of keeping you all informed about the latest internal and external opportunities we have for you to be a part of. If you have anything that is specifically related to cancer that you would like for us to share here, please do get in touch.
As always, we are grateful for your contributions to all pathways, projects and programmes in GM Cancer. We love to hear from you, so please do keep in touch by emailing us below.
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Share your cancer experience with university pharmacy students
The University of Manchester are holding four different workshops, from September 2025 to April 2026, to help their year 2 pharmacy undergraduate students to develop empathy, understanding and practical insight into how people experience cancer, so they can engage with the public more effectively and sensitively.
For each workshop date, they are looking for four different patient speakers to share their personal experience with cancer for 15 minutes, including if you knew what to look for before your diagnosis and what first signs and symptoms made you seek help (or delay seeking help). You will be presenting to around 40 students for 10-15 minutes, and then taking part in a smaller group discussions where the students can ask you questions. You will also have the opportunity to provide advice to the future pharmacists.
The workshops are taking place at The University of Manchester (Oxford Road), 10.45am-1.45pm on:
- Thursday 16th October 2025
- Thursday 27th November 2025
- Thursday 19th February 2026
- Thursday 23rd April 2026
If you are interested in taking part, please indicate which date/s you are available when you get in touch.
Breast Pathway Board Patient and Carer Representative
We are seeking a Patient or Carer Representative to join our Breast Pathway Board. We are particularly interested to hear from someone who has lived experience or supported someone with primary breast cancer. The overall purpose of the pathway board representative is to provide a link between the pathway board and the patient carer voice.
The pathway board works collaboratively, using innovative approaches to improve the breast cancer pathway, and in line with national guidance. Each pathway board has an annual work programme which reports quarterly into Greater Manchester Cancer Board.
Please get in touch if you are interested.
Health Inequalities Programme Board Member
We are seeking two Patient and/or Carer Representatives to join our Health Inequalities Programme Board. We are looking for individuals who have lived experience as a cancer patient or carer, are passionate about reducing health inequalities and can represent the views of diverse communities affected by cancer.
By joining the GM Cancer Alliance Health Inequalities Board as a Patient Representative, you will play a vital role in ensuring decisions meet the needs of all communities. At present board meetings are held every three months and last 1 hour and 30 minutes.
For more information, please get in touch with us.
Reviewer - NIHR Research for Patient Benefit Bid
We are looking for a patient and/or carer representative to help shape and review a research bid being developed with Manchester Metropolitan University.
The Greater Manchester Cancer Academy have developed an advanced communication skills training offer with Recourse: AI (is a leading conversational AI learning and assessment platform designed primarily for healthcare professionals).
In view of that, we would like to conduct a piece of research on its impact. We want to find out if individuals are gaining the skills they need through the training so they can communicate better with patients in practice.
If you would like to get involved, get in touch today.
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Upcoming GM Cancer Voices - personal development training sessions
We are excited to be working again with the organisation Delve to bring you five exciting training sessions on a range of personal development topics, exclusively for Patient and Carer Representatives.
These sessions have been funded using some remaining budget from last year. Given the current climate, it is unlikely we will be able to host these training sessions again in the near future. We therefore encourage you to make the most of this opportunity if you can. Please see below the sessions coming up September and October.
September and October sessions:
- Confidence: starting conversations that count
Ever walked into a room full of strangers and felt a bit unsure where to start? You’re not alone. This friendly, practical session will help you find your feet in those moments – from breaking the ice to making those first conversations feel more natural.
Face to face: Tuesday 9 September 1-3:30pm
- Communicating with impact
Sometimes you only have 30 seconds to get your point across – so how do you make it land? This session helps you craft short, sharp messages that bring your experience to life and make a difference.
Virtual: Thursday 9 October, 2-4pm
Face to face: Friday 3 October, 10am-12:30pm
For more details on each session and to sign up, please complete our short form: https://forms.office.com/e/mSiDenWLeA
GM Cancer Voices Catch Up events
It's not too late to sign up to our quarterly GM Cancer Voices Catch Up events. Our in-person catch up will be on Friday 12 September, 10am–12:30pm, at Friends Meeting House and our virtual meeting will be on Monday 15 September 11am-1pm on Teams.
This will be a chance to hear about some important projects happening within the Alliance at the moment, including:
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The BRIDGE Project – which aims to broaden participation and diversity in cancer research
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Development of metastatic cancer infographics
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An introduction to the Talking Therapies service
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A progress update on Greater Manchester’s Early Diagnosis Strategy, including the exciting relaunch of This Van Can
To register to attend, please fill out our registration link.
New monthly drop in sessions starting this October
In our annual survey, we asked whether you would be interested in a monthly drop in call on MS Teams to help us stay connected. A large number of you who responded agreed that you would like us to trial this. We will therefore aim to host a drop in call every month (aside from the months where we already have the Cancer Voices Catch Up events).
During these drop in calls, we will give an overview of our current opportunities. We will also have an open forum for you to ask us any questions, share any relevant updates with us, or get to know each other.
Our first drop in call will be on Wednesday 15 October, 12-12.45pm. You can come for as little or as long as you like. You can join the call using this link: joining link. We will also send a reminder nearer the time. Get in touch if you have any questions!
GM Cancer Data training session
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On Wednesday 12 August, our Business Intelligence team delivered part 2 of their data training session for our patient and carer representatives who joined the first session back in July. We hope to run the session again in autumn for anyone who could not attend the initial sessions. |
Made by Mortals summer party
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On Thursday 14 August, The Made by Mortals team welcomed our patient and carer representatives, along with staff, to their summer party. The event brought together community members, partners, and collaborators to celebrate this year’s achievements.
We were proud to join in and highlight the co-production of the 'My Friend Has Cancer' learning resource, where our representatives shared their experiences with honesty, courage, and creativity. Thank you to all of our patient and carer representatives that got involved! If you’d like to listen to the story, you can do so on our Greater Manchester Academy website.
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Personalised Care Animation Focus Groups
The Personalised Care Team are currently developing a new six-part animation series that explores important topics such as relationships, body changes, and intimacy.
Below we have listed the focus groups in development and coming up. If you are interested in joining an animation which is already in development Olivia from the Personalised Care team is more than happy to add you to the group to support with the development. Or if you’d prefer a 1-2-1 conversation, Olivia would be happy to connect.
Focus Groups:
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What is Psychosexual Therapy?: In development
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Heterosexual Relationships and Intimacy: In development
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LGBTQIA+ Relationships and Intimacy: In development
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Prostate, Penile, Anal and Bladder: In development
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Breast: Monday 8 September 13:00-15:00
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Gynaecological, Anal and Bladder: Wednesday 8 October 10:00-12:00
Please get in touch if you would like to take part.
Think Well with Cancer - NHS Talking Therapies
Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance has collaborated with the Greater Manchester Mental Health (GMMH) Talking Therapies Service to develop a dedicated pathway designed to support individuals affected by cancer.
This pathway is delivered by a team of experienced and qualified professionals who work with individuals to help them understand their mental health challenges and explore new coping strategies.
Support is available for a range of common issues experienced by people affected by cancer, including low mood, anxiety, stress, and difficulties with coping. Addressing these concerns can lead to improved overall wellbeing and quality of life.
The service is free, confidential, and available to anyone registered with a GP in Manchester, Bolton, Salford, Trafford and Wigan.
If you would like further information about our service and to make a referral please click on the link below.
Think Well With Cancer - Greater Manchester Cancer
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One of our patient representatives, Natalia, shares about joining the metastatic strategy delivery group
"I was diagnosed with de novo metastatic breast cancer in January 2024 and it came as a complete shock. I work for the NHS but knew practically nothing about breast cancer and certainly not secondary BC so I’ve tried to learn what I can (without scaring myself online!). What I’ve found is most of the information out there focuses on primary BC and how to prevent recurrence – not much use to those of us where that ship has already sailed. Having joined the GM Cancer Alliance breast small community as a patient representative, I jumped at the opportunity to get involved with the metastatic strategy delivery group and hope I’ll be able to contribute to and perhaps influence the strategy on behalf of all patients in GM living with secondary cancer."
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September covers a number of cancer awareness months, including gynaecological cancers and urological cancers - we have a range of assets available to support symptom awareness for cervical, ovarian and prostate cancers as well as our "Blood in your pee? See your GP!" campaign. Visit our cancer campaign resource centre where you will find campaign toolkits and other useful resources.
Sharon Withington urges early GP visits after Ovarian Cancer treatment
In view of gynaecological cancer awareness month, read about a teacher from Greater Manchester who is urging others to trust their instincts and seek medical advice at the first sign of unusual symptoms after her own delayed visit to the GP led to a stage four cancer diagnosis.
Sharon Withington, 54, is a PE teacher at Stockport Grammar School. She first noticed a slightly swollen stomach in April 2024 but assumed it was weight gain. Fit, active, and eating healthily, she didn’t think much of it. She said:
“It has taken a lot of personal and emotional strength to get here but I feel so fortunate. If this had happened 20 years ago, I might not have survived but the treatments now are amazing. Don’t be like me and think your symptoms will go away. Go to your GP if you have a swollen tummy or are weeing more frequently. With early detection and the advances in treatment, there’s hope. And I certainly have lots more I want to do.”
Read Sharon's full story on our website.
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GM Cancer Alliance updates |
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A message from Claire O'Rourke, Managing Director
Hi all,
I wanted to get in touch to let you know about a few changes at the Alliance.
Funding and plans
Some of you may know that earlier this year, we announced our Alliance budget for 2025/26 as £11.1m. We have been informed that £5m of this will be allocated to The Christie for service development. The funding we retain will cover Alliance staff salaries and committed costs identified at the end of last year and so we will be reviewing our plans.
We also hosted Mark Cubbon and Rob Stone from the national cancer team a couple of weeks ago which provided a fantastic opportunity to showcase the work achieved by the Alliance as well as demonstrate how we can influence and shape the future Cancer Alliance model.
Leadership news
From 1 October, I’ll be leading the Greater Manchester Diagnostics Network in addition to my Managing Director role at the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance.
This marks a significant change for both the Alliance and Network and we will ensure that our joint efforts contribute to system-wide transformation and improved outcomes for patients across Greater Manchester.
Separately, Lisa Galligan-Dawson, Director of Performance, has gone on secondment to Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust after six years at the Alliance. She has been instrumental in gaining regional and national recognition for the Alliance’s work and we wish her the best of luck in her new role. Lisa’s portfolio has been split across several members of the Alliance team.
Thank you
Finally, I wanted to formally say thank you for all the work you do in supporting the Alliance to improve cancer care across Greater Manchester. Your involvement is paramount to our success and is hugely valued.
I will be attending the Cancer Voices Catch Up next Friday and you’ll have the opportunity to ask me any questions you may have about any of the topics mentioned here, or anything else. I hope to see as many of you there as possible.
With best wishes,
Claire O’Rourke, Managing Director
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Health Inequalities webinar
The Early Diagnosis team hold monthly webinars to highlight organisations striving to combat health inequalities within Greater Manchester.
In this month's spotlight Dr Fassah Bibi presented their project, “AwareHer – Early Detection, Better Lives” from the Mustafia Sharif Organisation, which focused on improving cancer awareness and early detection among underserved women in Greater Manchester, particularly those from racially marginalised and low-income backgrounds.
The second presentation Abdul Malik-Ahad from Syngesis CIC shared learnings from Cancer Connections, a project focused on raising awareness of early cancer symptoms and diagnosis through culturally sensitive engagement, mosque and women’s group outreach, and bilingual resources.
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Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance a finalist at the 2025 HSJ Awards
Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance has been shortlisted for two awards at the prestigious 2025 HSJ Awards recognising our innovation in early diagnosis and cancer diagnostics.
The Alliance is nominated for NHS Communications Initiative of the Year Award for the work rolling out two mobile units under the “This Van Can” banner to raise awareness about the importance of early diagnosis for ovarian and bowel cancer. Thank you to our patient representative Vanesa who worked tirelessly on the bowel van and patients Charlotte and Hilary who featured on the side of the ovarian van.
Alliance staff are also in the running for the Modernising Diagnostics Award for the work to roll out an integrated AI systems into chest x-rays at seven NHS Trusts in the region. This is helping to support more rapid diagnosis, smarter referrals and improved cancer detection.
Greater Manchester becomes the first Integrated Care Partnership to diagnose more than 1,000 lung cancers through NHS lung health checks
Greater Manchester has become the first area in England to diagnose more than 1,000 people with lung cancer earlier thanks to innovative NHS Lung Cancer Screening.
The screening specifically targets people who are at an increased risk of lung cancer to help improve early diagnosis of lung cancer. In Greater Manchester, almost 130,000 people have now attended the service where they talk to a nurse about their lung health. Over 60,000 people – found to be at higher risk of lung cancer – were referred for a low-dose CT scan onboard a mobile clinic on the very same day. Find out more by reading the full article.
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New breast cancer symptom awareness campaign featuring Greater Manchester women
 The Alliance will be launching a new breast cancer awareness campaign encouraging people to “look and feel” monthly in September ready for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October. The campaign features some real women from the Greater Manchester area and encourages people to be vigilant and report any potential signs of breast cancer to their GP.
The launch will include paid advertising in the Manchester Evening News and on the In Your Area and Bolton News, Oldham Times and Bury Times websites as well as social media promotion and work to promote the messages with targeted community groups. We then plan to continue to use these assets through out the year and to share with other NHS partners.
The campaign is the result of work with five focus groups and aims to particularly speak to both women just below breast cancer screening age (40-50) and those just above screening aged (71+) as well as to women from ethnic minorities.
The resources can be used throughout the year,you can download the assets on our website. Please use the hashtag #GMBreastCancer where possible.
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NHS England has launched an official NHS WhatsApp channel to share trusted health information directly with the public. The national team will be sharing short, visual messages on:
- public health campaigns (e.g. flu, COVID-19)
- health alerts and seasonal advice
- key NHS updates and announcements
- myth-busting and fact-checking content.
To access the group, search for 'NHS' under the 'Updates' tab directly in WhatsApp. Got a story or idea for the channel? Contact the team directly at england.social@nhs.net.
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NHS Greater Manchester 'Keep protected' campaign
The NHS are offering free vaccines, to those eligible, to help protect you against serious illnesses that become more common as the weather gets colder. Find out more information in the image below.
If you would like to share the word you can download the toolkit on their website.
 Would you like to take part in the GoodDay project?
The GoodDay project will explore how people affected by cancer understand and
describe a ‘good day’ in their life. It will also explore what things they identify as
contributing to the experience of a good day.
Would you like to find out more? Please review the leaflet for more information on how to get involved.
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Gynae Pathway Board
Friday 5 September 2025, 2 - 4pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Volunteer Training: Confidence - starting conversations
that count
Tuesday 9 September 2025, 1 - 3:30pm - The Paterson Building, Wilmslow Road M20 4BX
Urology Small Community
Tuesday 9 September 2025, 1:30 - 2:30pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Programme Assurance Group
Wednesday 10 September 2025, 10am - 12pm -The Paterson Building, Wilmslow Road M20 4BX
Urology Pathway Board
Wednesday 10 September 2025, 1 - 5pm - The Northenden Golf Club, Palatine Road, M22 4FR
Psychological Support & Mental Health Delivery Group
Wednesday 10 September 2025, 2 - 4pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
GM Cancer Voices Catch Up [In-person]
Friday 12 September 2025, 10am - 12:30pm - Friends' Meeting House, 6 Mount street, M2 5NS
GM Cancer Voices Catch Up [Virtual]
Monday 15 September 2025, 11am - 1pm - 6 Mount street, Manchester M2 5NS
OG Pathway Board
Wednesday 17 September 2025, 10am - 12pm - The Northenden Golf Club, Palatine Road, M22 4FR
Gynae Small Community
Wednesday 17 September 2025, 2:30 - 3:30pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Programme and Pathway Board Forum meeting
Thursday 18 September 2025, 9:30 - 11am - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Head and Neck Small Community
Thursday 18 September 2025, 11am - 12pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Health Inequalities Programme Board
Monday 22 September 2025, 3 - 4:30pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Colorectal Small Community
Wednesday 24 September 2025, 1 - 3:30pm - The Paterson Building, Wilmslow Road, M20 4BX
Head and Neck Pathway Board
Friday 26 September 2025, 10am - 12pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
HPB Pathway Board
Monday 29 September 2025, 12 - 1:30pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
GM Cancer Alliance Cancer Board
Monday 29 September 2025, 2 - 4pm - The Nest, 6 Claverton Road, M23 9FT
Colorectal Pathway Board
Tuesday 30 September 2025, 10 - 12pm - The Life Centre, 234 Washway Road, Sale, M33 4BP
Skin Small Community
Wednesday 1 October 2025, 2 - 3pm - Virtual Microsoft Teams
Volunteer Training: Communicating with impact
Friday 3 October 2025, 10am - 12:30pm - The Paterson Building, Wilmslow Road M20 4BX
If you are a healthcare professional and have an opportunity you’d like to advertise, please get in touch at gmcancer.voices@nhs.net
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