What is a small community?
Each small community is an ‘expert by experience’ focus group, where members share lived experience of a particular cancer type.
Members of the small communities have the opportunity to improve cancer care for others. They can influence service improvement projects, and discuss topics that matter to them, highlighting where improvements can be made.
Small communities also help our patient and carer representatives who are members of the pathway board to represent wider perspectives than their own, as they hear what matters to others.
We currently have small communities for the majority of cancer pathways. The diagram below displays this. We continue to grow and diversify these groups, and are looking to establish new small communities where they don’t currently exist.
How can I join?
To join a small community, email us at gmcancer.voices@nhs.net or fill out our registration form and we will be in touch.
Useful documents
| Type of focus group (small community) | Dates/times |
|---|---|
| Blood cancer (haematological) | 27th November, 10:30-11:30am, online |
| Bowel cancer (colorectal) | 25th November 2025, 1-2:30pm, in-person at The Christie |
| Brain tumour | Dates TBC – get in touch to join |
| Breast cancer | Date TBC |
| Gynaecological cancer | 12th December 2025, 12-1pm, online |
| Head and neck cancer | 18th December 2025, 10-11am, online |
| Lung cancer | 14th January 2026, 12:30-1:30pm, online |
| Oesophageal and stomach cancer | 2nd December 2025, 11am-12pm, online |
| Pancreatic cancer | Not set dates – get in touch to take part in ad-hoc projects |
| Skin cancer | 27th January 2026, 1-2pm, online |
| Urological (bladder, kidney and prostate) cancer | Date TBC |
Want to find out more?
Take a look at our video to find out more about small communities, and meet some of the team.