Our Podcast
Across cancer services in Greater Manchester, amazing work is happening every day. Frontline staff, managers, clinical leaders and people affected by cancer work together with the simple focus of making sure that every person throughout Greater Manchester is able to access a world class cancer service.
This podcast is all about sharing some of the work going on with the wider Greater Manchester Cancer workforce – that’s thousands of people across all areas of Greater Manchester, working in many different roles – and giving some of the fantastic people who do that work the opportunity to share their experiences with everyone.
In each episode, presenter Steve Bland (from the BBC podcast You, Me and the Big C) will focus on a different topic and talk to some amazing guests so if there’s anyone you’d like to hear from or a topic you want to see covered, please get in touch.
Episodes
Personalised Care: Cancer Care Reviews
This is a special episode of the GM Cancer podcast, celebrating the role of Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) working in cancer care. AHPs are the third largest professional group within the NHS workforce made up of 14 diverse roles, including Occupational Therapists, Therapeutic Radiographers and Speech and Language Therapists.
In this episode, host Steve Bland and guests explore the journey into a specialist AHP role, raise awareness of Cancer specialist AHPs, empower AHPs to become specialists, highlight career opportunities and show how being a specialist AHP is so very, very rewarding.
Steve’s guests are:
Siobhan Doherty – Project Support Officer – GM Cancer Alliance – Workforce & Education Team
Lindsay Sudell – Specialist AHP in Brain and CNS Tumour Rehabilitation
Ian and Joanne Shaw – Ian is a neuro patient with a positive experience of his treatment throughout his long-term diagnosis. He is married with two children.
Personalised Care: Genomics
In Greater Manchester, we have a large programme of work looking at all aspects of personalised care, and this new series of the GM Cancer Podcast will look at some of the specific areas that we’re working on.
This episode looks at social prescribing. Social prescribing is help that doesn’t come in a pill, tube or bottle! Instead, it connects people to activities, groups and services in their community to meet the practical, social and emotional needs affecting their health and wellbeing. For example, you might feel happier and healthier if you get out for a regular walk with others, do something creative, volunteer or have a say on the things that matter to you and your local community.
Sometimes is easy to do these things. But sometimes you might need a little help to find out more about the support and opportunities out there! That’s where social prescribing comes in. Social prescribing is free and confidential and you can find out more here!
Personalised care is fundamental to delivering better quality care that is meaningful to the individual, supporting improvements in health and wellbeing. This will also help to empower people to manage their care and the impact of their cancer. Everyone is different and will have different concerns when they are diagnosed with cancer; therefore we need to ensure that patients are treated as people and they have the opportunity to discuss all of their concerns, whether during a hospital appointment or with their GP, and get the support they need.
Personalised Care: Cancer Care Reviews
Tracey Cowburn – Macmillan Cancer Care Coordinator, Denton, Audenshaw & Droylsden PCN
Dr Steve Churchill – GP in Trafford and Former Personalised Care Lead for Primary Care
Personalised Care: Genomics
Dr Matthew Krebs, Cancer Genomics Lead, NorthWest Genomics Laboratory Hub
Steph Gooder, Macmillan Lead Cancer Nurse, Tameside & Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
Personalised Care: Treatment Summaries
Helen Wrench – Macmillan NCA lead nurse for personalised care for cancer
Sarah Sykes – lead Macmillan colorectal nurse based at the Oldham Care Organisation
Jacqueline Jackson – patient
Personalised Care: Personalised Stratified Follow Up
Personalised care is fundamental to delivering better quality care that is meaningful to the individual, supporting improvements in health and wellbeing. This will also help to empower people to manage their care and the impact of their cancer. Everyone is different and will have different concerns when they are diagnosed with cancer; therefore we need to ensure that patients are treated as people and they have the opportunity to discuss all of their concerns, whether during a hospital appointment or with their GP, and get the support they need.
You can find out more about personalised stratified follow up here.
The guests on this episode are:
Chelliah Selvasekar – Colorectal Consultant and Laparoscopic Surgeon
Paula Harrison – Colorectal Nurse Specialist, NCA
Brian Stott – patient rep
Personalised Care: Holistic Needs Assessments
Personalised care is fundamental to delivering better quality care that is meaningful to the individual, supporting improvements in health and wellbeing. This will also help to empower people to manage their care and the impact of their cancer. Everyone is different and will have different concerns when they are diagnosed with cancer; therefore we need to ensure that patients are treated as people and they have the opportunity to discuss all of their concerns, whether during a hospital appointment or with their GP, and get the support they need.
In Greater Manchester, we have a large programme of work looking at all aspects of personalised care, and this new series of the GM Cancer Podcast will look at some of the specific areas that we’re working on.
This episode looks at Holistic Needs Assessments – what are they and why are they so important?
In this episode you will hear from:
Lydia Briggs – Clinical Lead for Personalised Care – Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance
Collette Kelly – Macmillan Lead for Personalised Cancer Care at the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
Mick Connelly – patient rep
Health Inequalities: How does Deprivation affect Cancer Outcomes?
In the fourth episode of a series dedicated to exploring the health inequalities that exist in our cancer system in Greater Manchester, host Steve Bland and guests discuss how deprivation impacts cancer outcomes in the region, explore the issues around deprivation and health and ask, why does deprivation play such a big role in creating health inequalities?
Steve’s guests in this episode are:
Gemma Knox, an Advanced Nurse Practioner at the Glodwick Medical Practice
Health Inequalities: The Impact on People with Learning Disabilities
n the third episode of a series dedicated to exploring the health inequalities that exist in our cancer system in Greater Manchester, host Steve Bland and guests discuss inequalities that impact people with learning disabilities.
Steve heads back to People First in Tameside to chat to Jenny Jones and Carol Lonergan from the Pennine Bowel Screening Service, and Leanne, who uses the support offered by People First.
Leanne explains the barriers and challenges that she faced around attending her cervical screen while Jenny and Carol talk about the work going on in GM to better support people with learning disabilities in all aspects of their cancer journey.
Links from this episode:
Health Inequalities In Screening
Steve’s guests are:
Caroline Mattinson – Cancer Screening Improvement Lead, Pennine Bowel Screening Service
Hannah Stirzaker – Engagement and Development Worker at Answer Cancer
Links from this episode:
Answer Cancer
AskDoc Bowel Cancer Screening – YouTube
Breast Cancer Now information about breast screening- https://breastcancernow.org/about-breast-cancer/screening-tests-and-scans/breast-screening/
Jo’s Trust information about cervical screening – https://www.jostrust.org.uk/information/cervical-screening/what-is-cervical-screening
Bowel Cancer UK information about bowel screening – https://www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk/about-bowel-cancer/screening/
Bee Seen Get Screened – https://www.answercancergm.org.uk/bee-seen/
Health Inequalities: an introduction
In the first episode of a new series dedicated to exploring the health inequalities that exist in the cancer system in Greater Manchester, host Steve Bland chats to:
Professor Matt Evison – Associate Director at the GM Cancer Alliance
Dr Alison Pye – Consultant in Public Health
Farida Anderson – Patient and Carer Representative
Steve and guests explore questions like what are health inequalities? What impact do health inequalities have on cancer? And what sort of issues do people affected by different types of health inequality have at different points in the pathway?
Our Cancer Workforce: New Roles in Cancer Care
This episode is number four in a series of four episodes looking at work going on in Greater Manchester, specifically to support and develop the cancer workforce.
In this episode we take a look at two new roles – Cancer Care Co-ordinators and Physician Associates. Steve and guests discuss how these roles are changing the way we work by spanning boundaries, filling gaps and helping to ensure we’re offering our patients the best possible care.
Host Steve Bland is joined by:
Louise Retout – Workforce and Education Project Manager, GM Cancer Alliance
Martin Turner – Tameside PCN Lead
Jess Docksey – Workforce and Education Programme Lead, GM Cancer Alliance
Stephanie Ogden – Consultant Dermatologist & Clinical Lead for Skin Cancer in Greater Manchester
David Harnett – Physician Associate
The Cancer Workforce – the Greater Manchester Cancer Academy and Lifelong Learning for our Workforce
This episode is number three in a series of four episodes looking at work going on in Greater Manchester, specifically to support and develop the cancer workforce.
People are the most important resource in healthcare, and in this episode we take an in depth look at the Greater Manchester Cancer Academy, exploring what’s happening to foster a culture of continuous development and lifelong learning, and how those working in cancer services in Greater Manchester can tap into the learning they need to progress their careers.
Host Steve Bland is joined by:
Professor David Shackley, Director (GM Cancer Alliance)
Mr David Ross, Consultant Urologist and Cancer Academy Director
Molly Pipping, Programme Lead, Greater Manchester Cancer Academy
Links from this episode:
Our Cancer Workforce: National Cancer CNS Day and the role of the cancer clinical nurse specialist
This is the second in a series of four episodes looking at work going on in Greater Manchester specifically to support and develop the cancer workforce.
In this episode host Steve Bland and guests are talking about cancer clinical nurse specialists.
Steve is joined by:
Hayley Turner – CNS
Lynsey Turner – aspiring CNS
Caroline Mattinson – bowel cancer patient
Claire Clarkson – GM Cancer Project Manager
Mark Foulkes – Macmillan Lead Cancer Nurse and Nurse Consultant / President of UKONS (UK Oncology Nursing Society)
A really key role in supporting and guiding patients, GM Cancer started National Cancer Clinical Nurse Specialist Day last year and it’s been adopted across the country. It’s taking place at on 26th April this year.
Our Cancer Workforce: What’s our strategy and why do we need one?
The Importance of Early Diagnosis
Cancer is almost always more treatable when it’s found early, and the NHS Long Term Plan is aiming to achieve the diagnosis of 75% of all cancers at stage 1 or 2, by 2028. Here in Greater Manchester work is already well underway to get us towards this target. In this episode presenter Steve Bland explores what we’re doing to hit that target with Dr Sarah Taylor, Primary Care Lead for GM + Clinical Lead for Early Diagnosis and Ali Jones, Director of Cancer Commissioning and Early Diagnosis. He also chats to patient Caroline Mattinson about her own experience with bowel cancer and finds out how catching her disease early was crucial to her positive outcome.
Lung Cancer in Greater Manchester
In this episode Steve explores how lung cancer affects people in Greater Manchester, finds out why the region is impacted far more than other parts of the country AND gets the lowdown on two brand new projects designed to give patients better outcomes and better experiences.The first, a chest x-ray pilot, is all about diagnosing the cancer earlier, while the second is a new one stop clinic for lung cancer.To explore all that and more, including how the pandemic impacted lung cancer, Steve is joined by Matt Evison, clinical lead for lung cancer at the GM Cancer Alliance; Seamus Grundy, a consultant respiratory physician; Kath Hewitt, lead specialist nurse for lung cancer, and Karen Peplow, who is a Macmillan lung cancer nurse specialist.
World Cancer Day 2022 Part 2: Closing the Care Gap in Greater Manchester
In the second of two special episodes to mark World Cancer Day 2022, Steve Bland looks ahead to the next 12 months in Greater Manchester and explores the ground-breaking projects designed to transform patient pathways, in the company of Lisa Galligan-Dawson, Performance Director at GM Cancer. Steve also speaks to Kirsty Rowlinson-Groves from Prehab4Cancer to find out what drives her to make a difference.
World Cancer Day Part 1: The Next 12 Months in Cancer Research
In the first of two special episodes to mark World Cancer Day 2022, Steve Bland looks ahead to the next 12 months in cancer research with Professor Rob Bristow, the director of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre. Listen to find out what’s coming up in Greater Manchester and across the world, and why the ‘Close the Care Gap’ theme is especially important.
Your Inspiration: What Drives You to Make a Difference?
Understanding the HPV Vaccine
In episode three, Steve Bland reflects on the study published in the Lancet that found that the HPV vaccine has cut cases of cervical cancer by almost 90 per cent (HPV vaccine cutting cervical cancer by nearly 90% – BBC News). But it’s not just cervical cancer that’s caused by HPV. In fact. many head and neck cancers are also related to the virus. Steve speaks to Navin Mani, a consultant head and neck surgeon at Manchester Royal Infirmary, and Steve Sweeney and his son Ben. Steve was diagnosed with vocal chord cancer six years ago and son Ben, 14, has had the vaccine.
The Future: The Galleri Trial
In episode two of our podcast, Steve Bland explores the exciting new Galleri trial announced by NHS England and healthcare company GRAIL UK, which could see a single blood test used to spot the early signs of 50 cancers, including some of the most difficult to diagnose and detect.
The trial is being rolled out in eight parts of the country, and one of those is right here in Greater Manchester. Steve gets the lowdown on the science from Sara Hiom, the Director of Cancer Intelligence at GRAIL, finds out how it will work on the ground from Dr Matthias Hohmann, who is a GP in Oldham and the Clinical Director for Cancer at Oldham CCG, and gets the thoughts of patient Julie Colville.
To find out more about the NHS-Galleri trial, you can visit it’s public website by clicking here.
Cancer and COVID-19
Presenter Steve Bland finds out how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected cancer services in Greater Manchester by chatting to Professor David Shackley, the Medical Director at GM Cancer, Kirsty Rowlinson-Groves, from the Prehab4Cancer Programme Manchester, and patient Charmaine Sangster who was diagnosed with thyroid cancer during the first lockdown.
An Introduction to the Greater Manchester Cancer Podcast
