A little “tweet” from one of our colorectal nurses

 

As you know from the previous post, April was bowel cancer awareness month. As part of this,  the colorectal nursing team ar our local hospital took part in raising awareness via Macmillan South West. You can view one of the team talking about the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer. Now, as it was filmed during the aftermath of Covid and before lockdown had been lifted, this had to be a “home video” if you like. With that, and nerves about getting everything wrong, I don’t think the team did too bad a job, do you? The team chose the best of a few and we are advised that many retakes were made before this one was finally submitted. Who thought filming a 1 minute video would bring even the most experienced people out in a hot sweat.

Go to Macmillan southwest Face book page and look at the feed for 29th April.

Spring unlocked

Well, firstly, welcome back to you all. It has been sometime since our last post and things have certainly been a little different over the last year. We can only hope that as we go forward in to our “unlocked spring” of 2021 that there is blue sky ahead of us and we have made it through the stormy times. We cannot stress the importance of staying safe, more so now than ever, to keep us all as fit and healthy as able. Whilst we all wish to get back to normal, we must all embrace the “new normal” with masks, distance and hand cleanliness. All of which are vital in stopping the spread of any pandemic. Hand washing throughout the day should already be a vital part of our armoury in quashing things like the common cold. Sadly, pandemics and outbreaks only highlight humanities inability to under take this simple task. Please follow the guidelines for a safer place to live and go about our daily lives.

Now, all of that said, what better way to start off our “unlocked” status than promoting Bowel Cancer Awareness Month. This means be aware of your bowel habits and do something about it if things are changing. You may think that it is obvious, but our hospital team see hundreds of people a year with a new diagnosis of bowel cancer, who have either ignored their symptoms or been too frightened  to do anything about it because they worry about a cancer diagnosis, or they do not want to undergo the tests. Bowel cancer is one of the more curable cancers if caught early enough. Therein lies the importance of one tiny word “if”,  because, “if ” you do something about it, “if” you go through the test/s and “if” you work with your specialist team whose aim is to get the best possible outcome for you. So our simple message is, be aware of your bowels and “if” things change, do something about it.  Now, another thing that people often say is “ I saw my GP and they advised.... but it didn’t work, and here I am”. Many people are asked, “Did you go back to the GP when it didn’t work?” And many times, the answer is “no”. If you are concerned, please do something about it, and that includes raising your concerns with your GP. To see/ deal with the ever growing population of this country, health care workers need you to be clear about what the problem is and what your concerns are; making a list often helps because we can all get a bit sidetracked or lost in a conversation that talks about something that may embarrass you. Be clear about your symptoms, the duration of the symptoms and your concerns. There are many bowel disorders that mimic bowel cancer, so raising the problem is the first step towards determining what the problem is. 

One of the many things our hospital team reported people complaining about during the pandemic was constipation. Here is our ideal opportunity to talk about the importance of bowel health. 

Firstly, everybody’s bowel is different; what is normal for you, may not be normal for anyone else. 

Secondly, there are three things that are vital to bowel health and they are as follows;

1. Diet - a good healthy balanced diet; this means including fruit and vegetables, fibre in the form of grains (beans/peas/pulses/seeded breads/cereals etc) and protein of your choice. Sadly, for many, chocolate or alcohol don’t fall in to those groups.

2. Hydration - every cell in the body needs to be well hydrated to function at its best. Tea and coffee alone can be dehydrating, as can alcohol, if drunk in the quantities that have become popular today. Water, juice or squash (non sugar based) should also be a staple part of your daily routine to keep the body well lubricated/functioning. The bowel needs to be well hydrated to enable passage of stools and lack of oral intake is one of the big contributors to constipation. 

3. Exercise - Exercise helps in moving the stools through the bowel in a timely fashion, preventing them from sitting too long in the colon and becoming dry and hard to pass. Constipation can also make you feel bloated, nauseous and generally unwell as it is a water product sitting in a confined space for too long.  Think about a rubbish bag full of household scraps and general debris sat out in the weather for too long - not a pleasant thought.

So, we can all be complacent when things are going well with our bowels, indeed bowels are one of the underestimated systems of the body, however, bowel cancer is “up there” with the common cancers in the UK. Only you can start the process of elimination to find out what the problem is. 

“The hardest part of any journey, is taking that first step” (unknown)

                                  

Cycling to Paris..

Well, there are some great photos arriving on Twitter from the cycling foursome, all looking rather dashing in their cycling shirts with our lovely charity logo on them. Way to go guys.

Head on over to @richbamford81 to see how they are getting on. Keep going guys, you are nearly there.

A huge thank you to @JuggsLewes  (what a great name!) on the way to Newhaven who gave our intrepid four a discount on their meal because they were cycling for charity. Now that is what we call 
generous, thank @JuggsLewes.

London to Paris.........

We are thrilled and delighted to inform you that Consultant Colorectal Surgeon, Richard Bamford, who works at Our local District General Hospital, Musgrove Park Hospital, is undertaking a sponsored cycle ride from London to Paris this weekend, with three intrepid friends in aid of our very own charity. This is quite some feat and something they have been preparing for over the last few months. Richard was aiming to raise £1000 and has set up a just giving page for donations. To date he has raised just over the target but is still looking for sponsorship. The ride starts on 6th September 2019, so there is still time to sponsor the four riders. Please head over to the Justgiving.com website and search for Richard Bamford if you wish to help him and his team attain their goals. There are 300 Kilometres to cover before they arrive in Paris, no doubt weary and maybe a tad saddle sore.

We are truly grateful for the time and effort that you are dedicating to this ride for us, so please accept our heartfelt thanks Richard, along with your friends Paul Smith, Dan Stickland & Tom Baker.

May the wind be behind you, particularly on the way home. 

We expect regular updates and know that you will be presenting evidence of the ride to the group as a guest speaker at our the Annual Autumn Event scheduled for 12th October at Somerset County Cricket Ground - watch this space for more details in the very near future

We can follow Richard and his friends on Twitter on @richbamford81

Annual Autumn Event 2018

Well, what a great day we had on Saturday for our Annual Autum Event. A huge thank you to all of you that attended and made it such a great day. Our Chairman gave us an update on the last year's activities and plans for the coming year, which included a report from our Treasurer. This was followed by a talk from Maggie Crowe, a representative from Macmillan who outlined the way in which they support your local Trust in a large variety of ways; Siobhan Linsey, Outreach Librarian "Dr Google & Health Information on the internet" - a fascinating talk on how to use the internet safely. This was then followed by Dr Mike Galli on "The GP's Perspective" of a cancer diagnosis.
All three were really interesting talks and we thank them for giving their time and professional experience freely. A question and Answer session followed with questions on a variety of topics raised by the audience for the panel made up of the three speakers and professionals from your local Trust. 

Over a rather delicious lunch that was accompanied by wine, the raffle was drawn with prizes ranging from fine champagne, vouchers for Mole Valley Farmers, Pynes of Somerset (Butchers), and luxury foodstuffs to name but a few. Thank you particularly to Pynes of Somerset and Mole Valley Farmers for their contributions to the raffle prizes. We will update you on the final figures for the raffle and donations once received from our Treasurer.

Once again it was really lovely to see so many of you and hear how you are doing, thank you.
Plus a huge thank you to those of you who have volunteered to become members of the committee; it is not an onerous undertaking but a charity really needs a core of people to keep it going and for that reason we are delighted that a number of people have agreed to join us which means we can now plan ahead for the coming year with surety.

April is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month

April is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month and we just wanted to remind you. Why? Well, because awareness saves lives, as many of you will know. 
So if you have symptoms, see your GP, don't be shy or worried, just do it. 
If you are 55, you will at some point receive a charming invite to undergo a one off flexible sigmoidoscopy here in Somerset - do take up the offer; it could save your life.
Lastly, if you are over the age of sixty, and a "poo kit" lands on your door mat courtesy of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Programme, please do it; it could save your life.

The message we aim to give is, don't sit on your butt, be proactive and actively try to save your own life. It has taken so long to get Bowel Cancer screening that it is such a shame so many people ignore it - and for many, that can be fatal. 1 in 3 people are diagnosed with cancer, try not to let that be you.


We have been researching how other countries raise awareness. We were really delighted to see that Australians have Red Apple Day - clearly, apples are big in relation to bowels! They have a great slogan "Preventable, Treatable, Beatable" which should become a mission statement for us too.


So firstly, please, please do the screening, and secondly, raise awareness. You can raise awareness in many ways, such as;




* Taking part in Stand Up To Cancer Events - the proceeds of which go to research in to Cancer.      Take a look at the link below to see how to get involved
https://www.standuptocancer.org.uk/




* If you have had Bowel Cancer, allay people's fears about tests and encourage them to just get it done

* Support us to support you - we are a small Bowel Cancer awareness group compared to our Australian cousins but no less passionate about raising awareness, treating Bowel Cancer and beating Bowel Cancer.




Be proactive - Get screened, get active, eat well, laugh, live. Many don't

Happy Christmas everybody

Well, as we come to the end of another busy year, we wanted to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We hope you have a peaceful and joyful festive period with your families, friends  and loved ones. Enjoy those festive treats and laugh long and loud if you can, for as we all know too well, this is not a rehearsal and life is for living.

                                         MERRY CHRISTMAS 🎄

Charity presentation...

Today, committee members of Somerset Bowel Cancer Support Group Charity,  presented a cheque to members of the Colorectal Cancer Team at Musgrove Park Hospital for £16,750. The monies have funded  an air seal machine, as seen in the picture, that allows complex rectal surgery to be undertaken at the Trust - a procedure that had not previously been available locally. The group has also funded two surgeons from the Colorectal Cancer Team, who specialise  in rectal surgery, to attend training in the procedure.

This picture shows, from left to right,  Maria Salter, Colorectal Nurse Specialist & committee member, Lorraine Cooke & John Fielding, committee members of our group presenting the cheque to Mr Eyre Brook, Senior Colorectal Surgeon, Mr Vickery, Colorectal Surgeon, former Chairmen and one of the founding members of the group, plus Lead Colorectal Specialist Nurse, committee member and founding member of the group, Nicky Forsyth.

It was a pleasure to be able to present such a generous cheque to the department that allowed for purchase of this impressive piece of equipment for the benefit of Colorectal patients. This has only been possible through the generous donations made by you, our members and supporters, for which we thank you.

We will soon be letting you know about our next target for the groups fundraising efforts, so do come back for updates.

Thank you

Well, what a great day was had yesterday at our AGM and Annual Autumn Event, more importantly what a good crowd. Nigh on 140 people attended to hear Mr Paul Mackey, Chairman of the SBCSG, give an overview of the works of the group over the last year and updated attendees on where their monies from donations and fundraising efforts have been spent, including leading technology for surgery such as the air seal machine for complex rectal surgery, training for surgeons to undertake new procedures and technology for the specialist nurses to utilise, as well as funding today's event. This was followed by excellent talks by Dr Daniel Pearl on being a Bowel Cancer Screening Endoscopist and what they do, as well as Dr Vikki Morris on Ageing and the secrets of longevity. Two fantastic speakers who certainly gave us food for thought and went down well with attendees. A lively question and answer session for the surgeon, gastroenterologist, geriatrician and specialist nurses was undertaken before lunch was partaken, and the raffle was drawn with many members of the audience carrying off their spoils at the end of the day.

What an enjoyable day it was and once again so lovely to see so many of you at the event. Our plea for assistance on the committee did not fall on deaf ears with a number of people coming forward either as members or to attend the next meeting to see what it is all about. Any charity needs a number of reliable willing hands to assist in maintaining its day to day running, not least this one, so we are very grateful for those people who came forward. We are also grateful for those people who have skills that they wish to offer as a one off to help the group or even people who are just happy to run errands of fill envelopes. New ideas for the group are also helpful and all suggestions will be considered.

As always we are grateful to those of you who donate in the various guises to support our cause, your fundraising and donations is what makes this possible, however big or small. If you have an idea for fundraising and wish to promote it, please let us know and we will blog about it. 

Once again, thank you for your continued support.

Autumn Event 2017

It is with great delight that we inform you that the annual Autumn Event will be held on Saturday 21st October 2017 at the Somerset County Cricket Club. We will update you with further details nearer the time but look forward to seeing you on the day where we will updating you on the charities activities and plans. We do so hope you can come and join us on the day and look forward to catching up with you all.

We are also delighted to see that our very own local hospital has done exceptionally well in the National Cancer Patient Survey, being ranked number four in the country with our very own Colorectal Team being the best in the South West. This is extremely well done, ranking high up along with some of the best cancer centres in the country. Well done team.

Festive season

It has been a while since we last blogged and for that we apologise. As for many of you, it has been a tough year but we are plodding on. The charity has lost a number of stalwart members of the group/ committee however we are lucky that a few remain. The clinical team who help to support the group have been snowed under for the latter part of the year which has contributed to the lack of noticeable activity.

The festive season is a time to reflect, pause if you like, and look back over the last year. Many of you are celebrating another year of survivorship, some remembering loved ones, and others continuing  that well trodden path of treatment that literally millions have trodden before you. Cancer is a difficult disease that causes all sorts of changes to a life that will never be the same again. Some of these changes are difficult but for many it is the chance to look at life afresh. Over the last year we have spoken to,and supported, many, many people diagnosed or affected by bowel cancer. It is a disease that crosses all boundaries; gender, age, race or creed, rich or poor - we hope we can support you all. In turn we hope that you will all continue to support us in raising the profile of bowel cancer locally, attending the two key events we hold each year to support you and, importantly, supporting our local clinical teams to support us all. 

On a more joyful note, remember to eat your greens, take plenty of fluids (the non alcoholic kind) and to get out and about for some brisk walks over the festive season - rich food can play havoc with those bowels!

May we take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We look forward to seeing you over the coming year.

🎃 👻 Happy Halloween

 Now, you may be wondering why on earth we would be posting at Halloween but actually there is a good reason. It's pumpkin season and pumpkins are a wonderful food particularly for the bowel. So when you have finished carving all of those pumpkins 🎃, a really good way to use up the flesh is to eat it (we mean the flesh of the pumpkin only, I know it is Halloween and all that but.... ). Pumpkin is a really good addition to soups, stews, pies and risotto, as well as the all American pumpkin pie 🎃.

If you like to try new things in your vegetable repatoire, 🍠 Sweet potato is also worth a try and a good source of  vitamins and nutrients. Plus, pumpkin and sweet potato soup is really delicious and what a glorious colour.

Apple season is here too; the good old apple is another really good source of fibre, amongst its many attributes. So after you have finished your apple bobbing or toffee apple (mind those teeth) don't forget that a good old apple 🍎 really does help keep the doctor away (or at least the bowel team anyway). 

Happy Halloween

Event Update

We are really sorry to have to announce that due to a number of problems with dates and speakers we have made the momentous decision to cancel the Autumn Event. We have done this because we could not achieve a suitable quality of speaker due to various problems with dates and availability. This is the first time since the group started but we do not wish to give you a substandard event therefore have made this decision; it is one that has not been taken lightly.

We will keep you up to date with the events programme and hope that you will all bear with us as we move forward. We fully intend to continue the work you, and we, do collectively to keep the group going but cannot compromise on standards. Please watch this space for further announcements.

Save the date!

Our annual Autumn Event is scheduled for Saturday 15th October 2016, so please save the date. Once again we have some exciting speakers for your delectation and are looking forward to seeing you for a catch up. As always, members of our professional team from Musgrove Park will be there on the day. A highlight of the year for our local professionals, to see so many of you, ambassadors for what they do every day. There is no greater joy than seeing so many of you fit and well. 

On a more serious note, the committee, who comprise professionals and patients, are desperately in need of your help. Committee members are now at an all time low and, if new members do not come forward, the future of the group is in jeopardy. We will be discussing this more at the Autumn Event and we hope that some of you may consider stepping up to the mark to help us; we do hope so. 

If you would like to join us, please let us know for catering and number purposes on:
Tel: 01823 352452

A huge THANK YOU to our supporters

We have great pleasure in informing you that with your kind donations, fund raising efforts, and general support the Somerset Bowel Cancer Support Group has purchased an air seal machine for the Colorectal Cancer Department at Musgrove Park Hospital. This piece of machinery is state of the art and allows for complex rectal surgery to be undertaken through the anus. This amazing piece of machinery creates a stable operating environment whilst ensuring that there are clear views to undertake the procedure and, importantly, decreases the operating time thus making it a much less stressful time for both patient and operating surgeon alike. The machinery is already earning its keep at Musgrove with first cases already undertaken. 

We would like to thank you all, literally one and all, for your continued support. We are a small local charity whose aims are not only to raise the profile of bowel cancer but also to improve the care of local people diagnosed with colon and rectal cancer. One of the ways we achieve this is by enabling new and innovative techniques to be utilised at our local hospital by our skilled local professionals. This machinery has already begun this process and it is all down to you for your support of us. So from the local professional team and the support group committee members please accept our heartfelt gratitude. 

Recent sponsored walk along the Bridgwater to Taunton canal to raise money for the Somerset           
                                                    Bowel Cancer Support Group

A sponsored walk, to raise funds for the Somerset Bowel Cancer Support Group,  was organised by Marion Maddison, a patient of Musgrove Park Hospital, on Saturday 21st May 2016. She was ably assisted by her colleagues and friends from Quantock Medical Centre, Nether Stowey, and several colleagues from Yeovil Hospital including Matt Sephton (Medical Oncologist), Matt Woolgar (Paramedic) and Beth Phillips (Sister, Oncology Department).

These intrepid walkers raised £1320 with the aim of assisting in the purchase of a piece of equipment known as a the Surgical Air Seal machine, to assist in complex rectal surgery, which is now on order thanks to the generosity of this group and many others who have raised funds to assist the Somerset Bowel Cancer Support Group. 

Excusing the pun, we can only thank you from the "bottom" of our hearts for your time, efforts and generosity. Thank you so much, each and every one of you.

Blog to watch

We have been alerted to a blog that may resonate with some of you, particular the male members amongst you. Meandmycolon is a blog written by a local man detailing his experiences of being diagnosed with bowel cancer and his subsequent treatment; and what a read it is. This blog does not shy away from those vital aspects of life that are important to us all. It is a powerful and evocative blog written with first hand experience, a great sense of humour and amazing style. We do applaud the author for his openness and great gift for sharing. Do have a read if you can. There is no more powerful a story than one written by those with first hand experience. At a time when it can feel as though you are the only one, and are too uncertain to talk to others, something like this may help to know you are not alone and are experiencing similar. You are all different and, of course, there may be similarities with your experience, maybe not, but we applaud the willingness to share. Thank you meandmycolon author.

http://meandmycolon.com

Apologies

Please accept our sincere apologies for the gap in blogging; we have had what we believe to be are called "technical difficulties" with a capital T. Never fear however, we are back and will resume full speed blogging hereonin. So please watch this space for up dates over the coming days and weeks. Thank you for your patience during the blip.

Two year blog anniversary

🎉🎉🍾🍾Unbelievable but, yes, the blog has celebrated its two year anniversary🍾🍾🎂🎉

How amazing is that, indeed, where did that time go!! We hope you still find it interesting and informative. We find it a quick and easy way to update you and let you know about up and coming events both locally and nationally. So please do keep coming back to see what we are up to and here is to many more years of blogging 😄

Thank you

A huge thank you to all of you who attended our AGM on Saturday. It was lovely to see you all and to give you a roundup of the year's business detailed by our Chairperson. We really enjoy these days which give us the opportunity to catch up with so many of you and hear how you are doing. Seeing so many of you fit and well after treatment means an awful lot to us, so thank you for your time.

The Chairperson was delighted to report that we are now one step nearer to purchasing the Air Seal that will be utilised when undertaking precision bowel surgery. We will of course keep you up to date with news on progress. Thank you so much for supporting us and for your generous donations which have made purchases, such as this one, possible.

The group also heard about the importance of patient feedback and how this very much forms part of how your local Trust's cancer care is monitored each year. The National Cancer Patient Survey is utilised by each Trust to assist in improving your care; it fits in with The National Cancer Peer Review programme and forms part of the measures by which Trusts are reviewed. Information is available on line regarding both of these. Here in Somerset, your local Trust takes this a step further by holding local Patient Experience Groups too. So your feedback is really important to the Trust, and us, alike.

The Autumn Annual Event is scheduled for Saturday 8th October, at The County Cricket Ground, and already promises some interesting speakers and stalls. If you would like to be invited, please do let us know by ringing 01823 342452 and asking for your name to be added to the list of invitees. 

Once again we would like to thank our committee members for the work both our patient and professional members undertake for you. A group such as this, and the two events, take quite some organising. If you would like to become more involved, we are always looking for new committee members. Please let us know if you are interested, on the number above.