Cancerkin and Maggie’s at the Royal Free Hospital

Cancer charities Cancerkin and Maggie’s have announced that they have merged to become Maggie’s at the Cancerkin Centre.   

The Royal Free is delighted to welcome Maggie’s to the hospital, where the aim will be to provide services and support networks to patients with all forms of cancer as well as their family and friends.

Maggie’s at the Cancerkin Centre will continue to provide all of Cancerkin’s services for people with breast cancer, including lymphoedema treatment, therapies, patient support groups and experienced patient services. And from next month, patients will also have access to all the additional services that Maggie’s provides, including courses on managing stress, returning to work after cancer and support for family and friends.

Cancerkin has taken the decision to join up with Maggie’s to ensure its stability against a background of cuts, and competition from a range of other charities, while it is still in a strong financial position.

Cancerkin chief executive Victoria Todd said: “I have watched this charity grow over the years and I am so proud that Maggie’s have agreed to take on and expand our work. Maggie’s will be able to provide a much wider range of support services to patients living with cancer and they too have a wealth of experience working on hospital sites.”

Maggie’s chief executive Laura Lee said: “We're absolutely delighted to be working with Cancerkin to create Maggie's at the Cancerkin Centre. The merger will allow both charities to extend the support offered to ensure people with breast cancer and the wider cancer population in North London receive the extra practical, emotional and social support that they need to live well. The new Centre will complement Maggie’s existing and planned Centres in London, at Charing Cross Hospital, at St Bartholomew’s Hospital and at the Royal Marsden, helping us to fulfil our aim of making the biggest difference possible to people living with cancer and their family and friends across the capital".

David Sloman, chief executive of the Royal Free London, said: “We have benefited from Cancerkin’s support to our patients over the last 28 years and we now look forward to working with Maggie’s who will continue this fantastic work supporting our cancer patients into the future.”

ENDS

Notes to editors 

About Cancerkin
Cancerkin was set up in 1987 as the first hospital-based, dedicated breast cancer charity in the UK. Cancerkin offers supportive care services to those living with the disease. The charity helps hundreds of women each year deal with the trauma of breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.

About Maggie’s

  • Maggie’s offers free practical, emotional and social support to people with cancer and their family and friends. Built in the grounds of specialist NHS cancer hospitals, Maggie’s Centres are warm and welcoming places, with qualified professionals on hand to offer a programme of support that has been shown to improve physical and emotional wellbeing.
  • The first Maggie’s Centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996;  2016 marks Maggie’s 20th anniversary.
  • There are now 18 Centres across the UK, online and abroad, with more planned for the future.
  • Maggie’s relies on voluntary donations to support and grow its network of Centres and to develop its unique, high quality programme of support. The charity’s aim is to make the biggest difference possible to people living with cancer and their family and friends.
  • Maggie’s President is HRH The Duchess of Cornwall.
  • For further information about Maggie’s please go to www.maggiescentres.org

About the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust
The Royal Free began as a pioneering organisation and continues to play a leading role in the care of patients. Our mission is to provide world class expertise and local care. In the 21st century, the Royal Free London continues to lead improvements in healthcare.

The Royal Free London attracts patients from across the country and beyond to its specialist services in liver and kidney transplantation, haemophilia, renal care, HIV, infectious diseases, plastic surgery, immunology, Parkinson's disease, vascular surgery, cardiology, amyloidosis and scleroderma and we are a member of the academic health science partnership UCLPartners.

In July 2014 Barnet Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital became part of the Royal Free London. Read 'A bigger trust, a better future'.