OGC Splash

Welcome!

Oesophageal-Gastric Cancer Support

for Portsmouth and the Local Area of South Hampshire

News Feed!

How you can help the timely diagnosis of oesophageal cancer

If you attended the group meeting in December you may remember us mentioning research into oesophageal cancer and that you can help! “Heartburn Cancer UK (HCUK) and Wessex Cancer Alliance, covering Dorset, Hampshire and Isle of Wight, are working together on a campaign to improve people’s awareness of Oesophageal Cancer during February 2025.” Find out how you can help HERE.

December Group Meeting 7th December

40 of us braved the weather today for our Christmas meeting! We basically just had a good old natter, mulled wine & mince pies! We also held our AGM.

We hope you enjoyed & wish you all a happy healthy Christmas, see you next year!

£797 raised for OGC-SPLASH at Musical Afternoon

An amazing £797.20 raised for OGC-SPLASH at a Musical Afternoon held at the Waterlooville Golf Club on Tuesday 5th November. Thanks to everyone who came along! We hope you enjoyed!

Would you like to take part in a research focus group?

Would you like to help with a research study to improve early detection of oesophageal cancer returning after treatment?

Kelly Cozens, Senior Trial Manager for the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit, has put a call out for patients to attend a Focus Group later in the year, please see below ⬇️

If you are interested in joining the focus group, please email Liz Allaway direct – l.allaway@soton.ac.uk

FREE Art of Oesophageal Cancer art book available to download!

Click HERE to download this fabulous ‘Art of Oesophageal Cancer’ book created by Ann who reached out to us through our Instagram page.

This book explains the oesophagectomy procedure really well & is an easy read, very useful! Ann has created this as her way of giving back! Thank you Ann! You can follow Ann on Instagram under the name @annorthernlass

Follow former committee member David Hall’s journey with the England Walking Football Team!

Our former committee member David Hall has created a new Instagram page for anyone wanting to follow his journey with the England Walking Football Cancer Team (England KC (Kick Cancer)Team)

David says: “The ethos of the setup is look at what is achievable and the squad is made up of talent, commitment, flexibility and support.

This is a completely new venture for walking football and the WFA (walking football association) really are leading the way. There is one squad of 20 people including I’m delighted to say two ladies. ( Ladies can play walking football aged 35+)
The squad is split between under 60’s and over 60’s.

Our first training session will be in Solihull on Sunday 6th October. No date yet but first match later this year at present is in the Basque Country. Yesterday we decided on our match and training kits. The match kit is 1966 World Cup Red. The training kit somehow matches the Pompey home kit including yellow for the goal keeper!“

He would love you to follow & spread the word! You can follow him HERE

Saturday 21st September Group Meeting

Thank you to everyone who came along to the meeting today, we enjoyed lots of interactive discussion sharing the difficulties faced & overcome post surgery with lots of opportunity get some questions answered.

We hope those who came along for the first time & are yet to have surgery found it useful to chat in smaller groups to get some tips & guidence.

Don’t forget to let us know if you’d like to come along to the Musical Afternoon on 5th November & we hope to see you all at our next group (festive) meeting on Saturday 7th December!


Team OGC-SPLASH compete in the Jolly Grolly Charity Golf Fundraiser

Team OGC-SPLASH at the Jolly Grolly Golf Competition held at Cams Golf Course Sunday 8th September 2024.
Although they didn’t win they had a fantastic day. Big thank you to Hazel Moss & family along with the organisers.

Money raised is split between OGC-SPLASH in memory of our very much loved & missed Graham Moss and the Portsmouth and Southsea voluntary lifeguards.

Update on money raised for OGC-SPLASH to follow!

Former Committee Member David Hall selected for Walking Football ENGLAND Cancer Team!

Huge congratulations to David Hall who has been selected to play for the Walking Football ENGLAND Cancer Team!

“The power of positively is an amazing thing. Once again it proves that cancer is not necessarily a restriction. Yes you need to adapt your life but it’s not the end ” Don’t let cancer win!”

Wishing David all the luck!

My DiCE Companion, a FREE resource for digestive cancer patients

My DiCE Companion has been recommended by Dave Chuter from the Guildford OG Support Group.

“My DiCE Companion is an interactive App/website for OG cancer patients, please do have a look and you can register on this page if you so wish, it is free and you can use as little or as much as you wish.” Visit the webpage HERE

DiCE (Digestive Cancers Europe) is a Charity based in Brussels which Dave is involved with as a Board member and Chair of the Patient Advisory Group, more details about DiCE can be found HERE

You can find helpful links such as these by visiting our Linktree

Group Meeting Saturday 20th July 2024

Around 40 of us had a lovely group meeting this morning which included a brilliant discussion with resident surgeon Mr Phil Pucher – we have received such lovely feedback from this being very helpful so it seems he was a big hit!

There were quite a few new people today so not too many photos were taken as we didn’t want to disturb your chatting during the break, we hope you all found today useful!

2024 Day Trip!

A glorious time was had by all at the 2024 day trip to Hilliers Gardens, Romsey on Tuesday 4th June!

We have a Linktree!

Our Linktree contains links to our social media pages, along with any relevant links to register for courses etc. You can view our Linktree HERE.

Apply for the HOPE Course!

Are you are living with or after a cancer diagnosis? Do you want to enhance your resilience, rediscover your strengths and increase your ability to cope?

Join Macmillan Cancer Support and HOPE For The Community 6 week online Hope Programme.

Apply HERE

Group Meeting Saturday 23rd March 2024

Over 50 attended our meeting on Saturday 23rd March, we welcomed quite a few new joiners & really hope you all took something helpful away from the morning. Senior Clinical Psychologist Emily Connolly gave an excellent presentation on Psychological & Emotional Support & we also held a very useful Q&A session. So lovely to see you all!

Next Group Meeting is Saturday 20th July ❤️


What can the NHS App do for you?

Did you know you can order repeat prescriptions, book & manage appointments, book vaccinations & view your medical records (if arranged by your GP) via the NHS App?

This takes a lot of pressure off when you’re having difficulty getting through to your GP for a result or simple request.

Find out more HERE.

December 9th (festive) Group Meeting

Over 40 of us enjoyed a festive meeting on Saturday 9th December despite the rotten weather! ☔️ It was a busy meeting, with a jam packed agenda! Will & Vicki Haslar discussed their journeys as a cancer patient and carer, we had lots of helpful updates, an AGM, and a Christmas quiz! Not to mention mince pies & mulled wine 🍷

We also trialled our brand new fancy reusable cups!

A reminder of your 2024 meetings dates:

Saturday 23rd March
Saturday 20th July
Saturday 21st September
Saturday 7th December

We wish you all a healthy and happy Christmas 🎅🏼🎁🎄 xx

Promoting Well-being Event 4th October 2023

OGC-SPLASH Committee members Gill Millett and Peter Datchens inspired many today talking about their own personal journeys through cancer treatment at the Promoting Wellbeing Event held at The Villiage Hotel Portsmouth. This event was run by Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust specifically for those living with cancer and beyond.

Celebrating our 10th Birthday!

On Saturday 23rd September we celebrated 10 years of our patient support group with the patients & their families who make it, the committee, the staff, it was a chance for us to celebrate the legacy of our wonderful support group and all we have achieved. Thank you to you all & happy birthday to us! ❤️

Lorraine’s surprise dinner!

After 10 years we have sadly had to say goodbye to our founder! Lorraine Sutton has stepped down as our Chairperson so it was only fair we said goodbye in style by throwing her a surprise dinner. Lorraine started OGC-SPLASH back in 2013 starting off as our resident Clinical Nurse Specialist & continuing as Chair following her retirement. We can never thank her enough for all she has done & hope she will still pop in on us from time to time!

NEW Opportunity for people affected by cancer to work in partnership with with Portsmouth Hospitals University Trust (PHU) Cancer Services

The Cancer Services team at PHU wish to build a partnership with those whose lives have been impacted by cancer. Past or current cancer patients, their family, or care giver.

Our vision is to:

· Work in collaboration with those who have lived experience of cancer here in our community, ensuring their views and experiences are heard, reflected upon and used to enhance cancer care at PHU.

· We recognise that working in a partnership acknowledges that individuals with lived experience are often best placed to give input into services. It grounds discussions in reality, helping us maintain a person centred focus. 

· We wish to engage with community organisations, advocacy groups, and all our local stakeholders. This will facilitate community-based awareness campaigns and health screenings. We are mindful always of the inequalities in healthcare, this partnership will support PHU to address this within cancer care by reaching underserved populations.

· Together we can have a significant impact to enhance and make a difference to the lives of cancer patients, their families and caregivers. Focusing on everyone having a positive, quality care and safe experience during cancer treatment and beyond.

We are holding an open event 9th October 2023 at PHU Macmillan Centre B level 16.00-18.00. Please come along to get a real insight into the work goes on behind the scene.

For more information and express your interest please:

NEW Physical & Well-being Workshops

Workshops are held on the 1st and 3rd Monday of every month at QAH, email macmillancentre@porthosp.nhs.uk or call 02392 283323 to book your place.

Photo Appeal!

We are appealing for your positive photos & stories, this will help us put together a book for ITU patients who may be feeling daunted by the road ahead.

Please send us your photos along with a short paragraph of explanation to OGMDTCNS@porthosp.nhs.uk

Spring Outing 2023

Many of us enjoyed a fabulous trip to Exbury Gardens on 25th April 2023, look at all these happy faces!

Patient Care at QA Hospital

QAH declared a Critical Incident on 11th October 2022 & they continue to prioritise patient care due to strike action. Please take note of local alternative walk in centres below 👇🏻

NEW support group for carers!

This brand new support group designed specifically for carers takes place 3rd Wednesday of every month. See below for details.

Fundraise for OGC-SPLASH!

Exciting news! You can find us on GoFundMe so those of you who wish to fundraise for us, can do so using this free website which sends 100% of the Gift Aid raised back to OGC-SPLASH. They also take no admin free from us to be registered.

Online Events

The sponge on a string that can detect early changes in the Oesophagus – Cytosponge webinar

If you missed your chance to catch September’s webinar on the Cytosponge with Rebecca Fitzgerald & Cambridge University then you can now watch it HERE. This is an exciting opportunity to learn about this new future way of detecting changes in the oesophagus early.

Group Meetings

July 2023

We had a lovely morning despite the weather! Over 40 members spent time discussing the patient experience & also enjoyed a Psychology presentation & discussion with our resident psychologist Emily Connolly.

March 2023

We enjoyed a busy meeting with a fabulous food quiz provided by our lovely Bryony who arrived armed with balloons & all sorts as props! We welcomed a few new members who we hope felt benefit from being able to chat to others further down the line.


December 2022

Around 50 of us enjoyed a Christmas group meeting today! Kelly Greany gave us a fabulous presentation on the work of Macmillan, we had mulled wine & mince pies, a festive raffle & a Christmas quiz hosted by the lovely Briony. A Fun packed meeting, we wish you all a happy healthy Christmas & look forward to seeing you next year!

September 2022

Just under 30 members attended our group meeting today & enjoyed a session on psychology with Lorraine & lots of group chat which is always the highlight of the day!

March 2022

On Saturday 12th March we held a group meeting for 30 OGC-SPLASH members who enjoyed advice from our resident dietician Rosie, and a chance to socialise & share experiences. It was fabulous to see so many of your lovely faces!

November 2021

We held an in person meeting on Saturday 20th November for the first time in a while with a reduced number of members. It was wonderful! Members enjoyed sharing experiences as usual with lots of tips and advice given by Lorraine. We are also thrilled to introduce Peter Datchens as our new committee member!

July 2021

A selected group of 23 members enjoyed a face to face meeting on 3rd July for the first time in 10 months! We had a few new members to welcome to the Splash family who hopefully benefited from the open chat session discussing diet & psychology followed by a Q&A with our surgeon Ben Knight. We had a full range of members from pre-surgery to 12 year survivors & it was truly lovely to see support offered to those struggling by other members, we feel so blessed to have such an amazingly supporting group. We also thanked our marathon runner Chrissy for the £1748+ recently raised for us presenting her with some beautiful flowers.

December 2020

OGC-SPLASH history was made in December 2020 when we trialed 2 small zoom meetings. We were initially unsure if holding meetings in this way would work well, but we were proven wrong by the huge success of both meetings. We invited a small group to both containing a mix of new patients, and those who have been members for some time. Instead of the usual format of a guest speaker we simply allowed everyone an hour to chat freely and share stories and tips. It was clear to see that providing support in this way was invaluable to all, and new friendships and support buddies were formed. Following the success of these meetings we plan to hold more during 2021 so please sit tight for your invite!

The first OGC-SPLASH zoom meetings held in December 2020

September 2020

We held a small socially distanced meeting on 19th September 2020 for 14 members, mainly new members who seemed to really benefit from meeting others & swapping stories.
If you didn’t receive an invite please bear with us, we are trying to arrange small pod groups based on postcode and you will receive your individual invite as soon as we are able to visit a town near you!

Bits & Bobs

Universal Key for disabled toilets

You can purchase a universal key which opens locked disabled toilets across the country through Disability Rights UK HERE. Toilets fitted with National Key Scheme (NKS) locks can be found in shopping centres, pubs, cafe’s and bus/train stations to name just a few places and in most parts of the country. The key costs £4.75 including delivery (Excl VAT).

NHS Talking Therapies

If you are struggling with depression or anxiety, you can be referred to NHS Talking Therapies by your GP or refer yourself online. See HERE for details.

Adults Safe Haven – for support with your mental health

If you need a little extra support with your mental health, Safe Haven may be the place for you. Link to website can be found HERE.

We are now a registered charity!

As of 15th May 2020 OGC-SPLASH is a registered charity with charity number 1189515. You will soon be able to fundraise specifically for us online and link us to your fundraising events, please check this website for the details which will be announced soon. The Committee recently met to celebrate and discuss future plans for the group (any excuse for bubbly!)

Dr Daksha Trivedi’s new book – ‘Now Living the Dream: A tale of surviving cancer’ is out now!

Dr Daksha Trivedi’s new book – “Now Living the Dream: A tale of surviving cancer” is available to buy on Amazon. Click to buy either as an ebook or paperback. The book will appeal to all cancer patients and their families as well as the medical profession – highlighting the journey as a patient.

In the words of Dr Trivedi, “My book conveys a message of love, courage and faith that overcomes all fears and not just to survive but how to live life to the full.”

All proceeds of the book sales will go to appropriate charities including the OPA, Together Against Cancer &  Macmillan Cancer Support.  You can also click here to buy the book direct from Dr Trivedi’s website.

‘Now living the Dream – A tale of surviving cancer’ out now

QA Fruit & Veg market

The QAH fruit & vegetable market is now open Mondays, Tuesdays & Wednesdays, from 8am-4pm – a exciting new event supporting wellbeing.

Anne’s surgical award

Here is our lovely Anne Gibbons receiving a surgical award for keeping the UGI CNS service running during the pandemic – how lucky we all are to have such a wonderful lady on our side 💕💕 Well done Anne & THANK YOU! Xxx

Tracy – our COVID Hero!

Our OGC-SPLASH COVID Hero award goes to Tracy Ancsell! On behalf of us all we wanted to acknowledge Tracy’s dedication to duty, when the call came to return to the centre of the pandemic our cancer CNS Tracy stood up to be counted and returned to critical care to nurse the most vulnerable and then bounced back into her job that was being managed by Anne… what a team! Thank you Tracy!

Tracy in all her glory!

Macmillan Centre QAH!

The Macmillan Centre is open for appointments to offer support and information for patients who are already attending the hospital. Services are also offered by telephone, just call 02392 283323.

Fundraising

RNLA Gosport raise money in memory of Chris Hodge

We would love to say a massive thank you to Valerie (wife of Chris Hodge) who sadly lost his battle with cancer very recently.
Chris had contacted the group to say that his friends Stuart and Elaine from the RN association Gosport had raised £2,362 to donate to OGC Splash and they presented us with a cheque at our July 23 meeting.

A kind and brave action in their time of grief.. THANK YOU! We remember Chris ❤️

Riordan ran 5K every day of January 2021 for OGC-SPLASH!

Riordan Hanan ran 5K every single day of January 2021 to raise funds for OGC-SPLASH, for 31 days straight he ran in support of Splash at various locations. Riordan’s family have been touched by cancer several times sadly, including the loss of his older brother at just 17 years old. Riordan wanted to do something different to the usual setting of a new years resolution which is quickly forgotten, and plans to do something meaningful every month of 2021 starting with this.

You can still sponsor Riordan, or share his link by clicking HERE.

Committee member Christine Gorham recently ran her 52nd marathon in 52 weeks – and on 19th May she takes on her new challenge of running 10 marathons in 10 days in memory of her husband John who sadly passed away in 2018 from oesophageal cancer. Christine hopes to raise awareness of the disease, and will be fundraising for both Heartburn Cancer UK and OGC-SPLASH. If you would like to sponsor Christine and support OGC-SPLASH please click HERE.

Christine & John Gorham

Handy Links