You turn up and are seen almost immediately. It’s so relaxed and there’s always a cup of tea on offer.
Juggling school drop off and pick up for two young children in between chemotherapy appointments at hospital was quite a logistical challenge for the Neal family until the opportunity arose to use the mobile cancer care unit.
After a successful operation for bowel cancer, Richard Neal needed a course of chemotherapy at Cheltenham Hospital, around 11 miles away from his home in Stroud, Gloucestershire.
“The problem was that I wasn’t allowed to drive after my chemo sessions,” he says.
“I could get there by train with a bit of a walk at the other end but after chemo the effects kick in fairly quickly and all you really want to do is get home as soon as you can and get comfortable on the sofa. Travelling just becomes the biggest chore.
“My wife works, and the children are at primary school so arranging for me to be collected after chemo was tricky to say the least and it’s not something you really need to be worrying about on top of your treatment.
When Richard was given the chance to have his chemo on the mobile unit at parked at Stroud Hospital, a few minutes from home he says family life was transformed.
“I could just call my wife when the treatment was finished and she would pop out and get me in around five minutes,” he says.
It’s a brilliant service. The staff at the hospital were fantastic but on the mobile unit there is a lot less waiting time.
“You turn up and are seen almost immediately. It’s so relaxed and there’s always a cup of tea on offer.
“It’s a great atmosphere. The small space encourages a real sense of camaraderie.
“I found I was always either chatting with a patient or a nurse. It makes the time go by very quickly.”
Even though Richard’s visits to his GP had been frequent, cancer was not something he had considered.
“I was expecting them to tell me I had a bit of stomach acid or haemorrhoids, something really banal, so it was a shock,” he says.
“You immediately worry about your mortality and your family.”
Fortunately, a CT scan showed that the cancer hadn’t spread so Richard was booked in for keyhole surgery to remove the tumour.
“When I got the call to say the cancer hadn’t spread, I immediately felt the dark clouds lifting,” he says.
He was due to have keyhole surgery, but it was discovered that the tumour was quite large, and the cancer was also in some nodes and connective tissue, so he had to have full open surgery.
“I got some great support from an old friend who helped to get me into a good place mentally and physically,” says Richard.
“Also, the pre-habilitation team put me in really good stead.
“I was told it would take 5-8 days to recover but I was out of hospital in 5 days with full open surgery.”
He laughs: “Now it looks like I have tried to draw a six-pack on my abdominal muscles!”
Richard was only 44 when he was diagnosed and in less than a year, he now has no evidence of disease.
He is easing himself back into work as a contractor with the help of his supportive clients.
He says: “I feel very lucky to be here and to have had access to the most amazing treatment and services available.”
You turn up and are seen almost immediately. It’s so relaxed and there’s always a cup of tea on offer.
Juggling school drop off and pick up for two young children in between chemotherapy appointments at hospital was quite a logistical challenge for the Neal family until the opportunity arose to use the mobile cancer care unit.
After a successful operation for bowel cancer, Richard Neal needed a course of chemotherapy at Cheltenham Hospital, around 11 miles away from his home in Stroud, Gloucestershire.
“The problem was that I wasn’t allowed to drive after my chemo sessions,” he says.
“I could get there by train with a bit of a walk at the other end but after chemo the effects kick in fairly quickly and all you really want to do is get home as soon as you can and get comfortable on the sofa. Travelling just becomes the biggest chore.
“My wife works, and the children are at primary school so arranging for me to be collected after chemo was tricky to say the least and it’s not something you really need to be worrying about on top of your treatment.
When Richard was given the chance to have his chemo on the mobile unit at parked at Stroud Hospital, a few minutes from home he says family life was transformed.
“I could just call my wife when the treatment was finished and she would pop out and get me in around five minutes,” he says.
It’s a brilliant service. The staff at the hospital were fantastic but on the mobile unit there is a lot less waiting time.
“You turn up and are seen almost immediately. It’s so relaxed and there’s always a cup of tea on offer.
“It’s a great atmosphere. The small space encourages a real sense of camaraderie.
“I found I was always either chatting with a patient or a nurse. It makes the time go by very quickly.”
Even though Richard’s visits to his GP had been frequent, cancer was not something he had considered.
“I was expecting them to tell me I had a bit of stomach acid or haemorrhoids, something really banal, so it was a shock,” he says.
“You immediately worry about your mortality and your family.”
Fortunately, a CT scan showed that the cancer hadn’t spread so Richard was booked in for keyhole surgery to remove the tumour.
“When I got the call to say the cancer hadn’t spread, I immediately felt the dark clouds lifting,” he says.
He was due to have keyhole surgery, but it was discovered that the tumour was quite large, and the cancer was also in some nodes and connective tissue, so he had to have full open surgery.
“I got some great support from an old friend who helped to get me into a good place mentally and physically,” says Richard.
“Also, the pre-habilitation team put me in really good stead.
“I was told it would take 5-8 days to recover but I was out of hospital in 5 days with full open surgery.”
He laughs: “Now it looks like I have tried to draw a six-pack on my abdominal muscles!”
Richard was only 44 when he was diagnosed and in less than a year, he now has no evidence of disease.
He is easing himself back into work as a contractor with the help of his supportive clients.
He says: “I feel very lucky to be here and to have had access to the most amazing treatment and services available.”
