We listen to our Cancer Coach participants and use their feedback to directly shape our existing services, as well as to develop new ones
In his latest blog, Cancer Support UK CEO, Mark Guymer focuses on the hard work that goes on behind the scenes to improve and develop our core services.
At Cancer Support UK, we know that cancer doesn’t end when treatment does. That’s when a very different kind of journey begins – one that’s often silent, solitary, and emotionally overwhelming. People tell us they feel lost, vulnerable and unsure of where to turn next.
That’s why listening to the people we support is not just important – it’s essential. Their experiences and feedback directly shape how we evolve our services. Because the best way to design meaningful support is to work alongside those who’ve lived through it.
Feedback helps our services evolve
Over the past four years, we’ve been listening closely to our Cancer Coach participants – individuals who joined our free post-treatment peer support groups. Their views have been helping us improve our core service, as well as shaping how we evolve our services.
Although many Cancer Coach participants tell us how powerful it was to connect with others who ‘just get it’. We also learnt that for some people, committing to Cancer Coach’s six week programme, was simply not possible. People’s busy lifestyles require additional flexibility, whether that is due to family life or work. Others are unsure about exploring their feelings or sharing with a group.
Cancer Coach Digital provides emotional support in a flexible format
Cancer Coach goes digital
We have taken this insight and with further input and testing with our participants user group we developed additional Cancer Coach services to provide further emotional support to the increasing number of people recovering from cancer treatment.
So now there are several new ways to access Cancer Coach’s emotional support.
For those looking for more flexibility, we now offer Digital Cancer Coach – a self-guided, interactive, online version of our original six-week Cancer Coach group programme. It allows people to work through the same carefully designed content in their own time, at their own pace, and from the comfort of home.
In addition, Cancer Coach digital is configured to be accessible on any smartphone, meaning Cancer Coach can be in a participant’s pocket whenever and wherever they need it.
We know that the post treatment journey is not linear, there can be many emotional ups and downs over a long period of time. Cancer Coach Digital supports this journey by allowing participants to access the content at whatever point in time suits them best, and to revisit it as many times as is useful, as well as allowing them to self-select the topics that most resonate.
Participants from the six-week group also tell us that Cancer Coach digital offers a welcome refresher on exercises and tools beyond the core programme.
Building confidence with Focus Forwards
Another new service we’ve introduced is Cancer Coach Focus Forwards – a one-hour interactive Zoom workshop designed to help people move forward with confidence following the completion of their cancer treatment. Led by one of our experienced Cancer Coach team, the session explores common post-treatment emotions, offers practical techniques for managing anxiety, and provides space for questions and reflection. These short sessions are designed to be slightly less interactive than the six-week Cancer Coach group, to appeal to people who may not yet feel comfortable sharing on a more personal level.
According to the feedback we’ve received, it appears we are meeting many people’s needs, with a significant number of participants agreeing that the Focus Forwards session helped them:
- To feel less alone
- To better understand why they feel the way they do
- It also gave them a useful tool to help manage their emotions
Their comments also indicated that all sections of the Focus Forwards session resonated with them – these included topics such as:
- Why do we feel the way we do?
- Lived experience storytelling from a Cancer Coach
- A thought challenging exercise, which helps demonstrate the different thought types
People’s comments were wide ranging:
- “The session was a real comfort.”
- “I’m a bit in denial – try to resist feeling this way, stop it from winning – I now understand I am trying to be what I think I should be, acting how I ought to act, rather than actually listening to me and how I feel. Amazed to find out about this service.”
- “I loved today’s session. As I mentioned, it felt like having a hug! All of my feelings are valid and I only ever feel they are by people that understand what cancer is like.”
- “I was diagnosed 2020 and this is the first time that a cancer patient was fully understood with all our different emotions that I have found so difficult to understand.”
Cancer Compass – offering an ’emotional checkpoint’
In addition, we’ve launched Cancer Compass – a simple, supportive ‘emotional checkpoint’ where people can reflect on how they’re feeling and decide what next steps might help. In under a minute, users answer a few simple questions and are then guided to the most appropriate support.
Cancer Compass was created to address the needs of the 1.7 million cancer patients in the UK experiencing unmet emotional needs. The service alleviates rising pressure on GPs and ensures that no one has to figure out post-treatment recovery alone. It removes the guesswork and anxiety for people asking: “What help do I need and where do I find it?”
The tool has been particularly valuable in reaching people who may not yet have acknowledged they need support, or who aren’t sure how to start. By meeting people’s emotional and digital needs, Cancer Compass helps open the door to vital conversations and interventions at the right time.
The data proves how successful this tool is already proving. In 2024, 1,759 people accessed Cancer Compass to receive personalised emotional support.
And for anyone seeking guidance at their own pace, our online signposting pages offer clear information and links to trusted support services.
Cancer Coach catch-ups
We know that one of the main reasons people come to Cancer Coach is that they feel isolated and adrift after the completion of treatment and the structure of appointments. However, feedback from the groups showed us that while we are addressing these issues within the six week programme, the conclusion of the sessions has the potential to trigger those same issues of loss of structure and support.
So we developed the catch ups to provide a more gradual transition, allowing people to revisit and reflect on the tools they have learned, and to keep connected.
Catch ups (each lasting one and a half hours) are held at one, three and six month intervals after the completion of each Cancer Coach group.
Workplace training refresher sessions
In 2024, Cancer Support UK introduced three new refresher sessions for Workplace Cancer Support Ambassadors, focusing on side effects, questioning skills, and real-life scenarios to enhance support and confidence.
The purpose of refresher sessions is to ensure that our Workplace Cancer Support Ambassadors keep their skills updated, have the opportunity to dig deeper into specific topics, and to remain connected to fellow ambassadors and our charity.
Innovation is at the heart of what we do
This is what innovation looks like at Cancer Support UK. It’s not about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about responsive, compassionate support that adapts to what people really need – based on what they tell us.
So to everyone who’s given us feedback, filled in an evaluation, or taken the time to share your story – thank you. You’ve helped us grow, adapt, and improve the support we provide in progressing the emotional recovery of people living with and beyond cancer.
Because when we listen and learn, we can make sure no one has to face life after cancer alone.
Join Cancer Coach
If you are interested in any of our Cancer Coach services, please contact the Cancer Coach team for an informal chat to find out more. Call: 020 3983 7616. Or email: cancercoach@cancersupportuk.org
