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Hope for Tomorrow receives Royal Invitation

We’ve been invited!

Pioneering national mobile cancer care charity, Hope for Tomorrow, has been invited to attend a community reception, hosted by HM The King and HM The Queen, on the 30 April at Buckingham Palace.

The exclusive invitation follows Hope for Tomorrow’s own royal event in October last year, held at the Honourable Artillery Company, the historic home of the oldest regiment in the British Army.

Attended by HRH Prince Michael of Kent, along with representatives from businesses, trusts and other foundations, this special event highlighted the charity’s mission to bring cancer care closer to patients through their mobile units – saving them both travel and hospital-related costs. It also underlined the support it provides NHS trusts by easing pressure on oncology departments across the country.

An image showing the outside of Hope for Tomorrow's mobile cancer care unit 'Helen'. The doors are open ready to welcome patients
An image showing the outside of Hope for Tomorrow's mobile cancer care unit 'Helen'. The doors are open ready to welcome patients

We’ve been invited!

Pioneering national mobile cancer care charity, Hope for Tomorrow, has been invited to attend a community reception, hosted by HM The King and HM The Queen, on the 30 April at Buckingham Palace.

The exclusive invitation follows Hope for Tomorrow’s own royal event in October last year, held at the Honourable Artillery Company, the historic home of the oldest regiment in the British Army.

Attended by HRH Prince Michael of Kent, along with representatives from businesses, trusts and other foundations, this special event highlighted the charity’s mission to bring cancer care closer to patients through their mobile units – saving them both travel and hospital-related costs. It also underlined the support it provides NHS trusts by easing pressure on oncology departments across the country.

Charity CEO, Tina Seymour on board a Hope for Tomorrow mobile cancer care unit with HRH Prince Michael of Kent

The Palace reception, taking place on 30th April 2025, is being held in celebration of community-based cancer support initiatives raising awareness of the needs of cancer patients. Members of the Hope for Tomorrow team, along with staff, supporters, volunteers, and partners of the charity have been invited by the Royal Family to attend, alongside Tina Seymour, CEO of Hope for Tomorrow.

Tina said: “We are incredibly proud to be part of such a prestigious occasion. It follows our special event last year attended by HRH Prince Michael of Kent. Our recent royal recognition is a testament to the hard work of our dedicated team, who work tirelessly to ensure that our mobile cancer care and support services reach patients across the country.

“Of course, this incredible work would not be possible without the support of our team, our amazing fundraisers, event sponsors and corporate partners. Whether through Pay for a Day donations, which fund one of our units for a day, participation in and sponsorship of our Cuppa for Cancer Care campaign, or the brilliant efforts of our individual fundraisers – each contribution is vital to our commitment to bring cancer care closer.”

Charity CEO, Tina Seymour on board a Hope for Tomorrow mobile cancer care unit with HRH Prince Michael of Kent

The Palace reception, taking place on 30th April 2025, is being held in celebration of community-based cancer support initiatives raising awareness of the needs of cancer patients. Members of the Hope for Tomorrow team, along with staff, supporters, volunteers, and partners of the charity have been invited by the Royal Family to attend, alongside Tina Seymour, CEO of Hope for Tomorrow.

Tina said: “We are incredibly proud to be part of such a prestigious occasion. It follows our special event last year attended by HRH Prince Michael of Kent. Our recent royal recognition is a testament to the hard work of our dedicated team, who work tirelessly to ensure that our mobile cancer care and support services reach patients across the country.

“Of course, this incredible work would not be possible without the support of our team, our amazing fundraisers, event sponsors and corporate partners. Whether through Pay for a Day donations, which fund one of our units for a day, participation in and sponsorship of our Cuppa for Cancer Care campaign, or the brilliant efforts of our individual fundraisers – each contribution is vital to our commitment to bring cancer care closer.”

Founded in Gloucestershire in 2002, by the late Christine Mills MBE to drive cancer care forward, in 2007 Hope for Tomorrow launched the world’s first mobile cancer care unit, known to its team, nurses and patients as ‘Helen’. In partnership with Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Helen treated over 1,820 patients in the county last year, making their lives that much easier at a difficult time.

Hope for Tomorrow has 14 units and support vehicles across England and partnerships with nine NHS hospital trusts. Each unit can provide cancer care to up to four patients at a time and an average of 20 patients a day, with a total of 26,760 patient visits across 42 locations between 2023 and 2024. 50% of these patients saved over £6 per visit on parking and reduced their travel by an average of 17.4 miles. On average they saved 2.5 hours per treatment.

Over half said it improved their chances of completing their treatment and 93% found it more convenient to have their cancer care on the mobile unit – giving their experience an overall rating of 4.91 out of 5.

The inside of a mobile cancer care unit.
The inside of a mobile cancer care unit.

Founded in Gloucestershire in 2002, by the late Christine Mills MBE to drive cancer care forward, in 2007 Hope for Tomorrow launched the world’s first mobile cancer care unit, known to its team, nurses and patients as ‘Helen’. In partnership with Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Helen treated over 1,820 patients in the county last year, making their lives that much easier at a difficult time.

Hope for Tomorrow has 14 units and support vehicles across England and partnerships with nine NHS hospital trusts. Each unit can provide cancer care to up to four patients at a time and an average of 20 patients a day, with a total of 26,760 patient visits across 42 locations between 2023 and 2024. 50% of these patients saved over £6 per visit on parking and reduced their travel by an average of 17.4 miles. On average they saved 2.5 hours per treatment.

Over half said it improved their chances of completing their treatment and 93% found it more convenient to have their cancer care on the mobile unit – giving their experience an overall rating of 4.91 out of 5.

The inside of a mobile cancer care unit.

Tina added: “The last few years have been incredibly difficult for the charity sector with individual donations down on average around 50%, as the cost-of-living crisis persists. This comes as cancer diagnoses continue to rise. As a charity we have remained incredibly agile to support our fundraisers and corporate partners, and, as a result, we’ve launched a ‘Special Edition Corporate Sponsorship Pack’ in honour of this event with unique ways for businesses to get involved. We’ve also designed a special edition Hope for Tomorrow brooch, which we will be proudly wearing at the Royal reception as a symbol of support.

“Fortunately, thanks to the generosity of everyone we have managed to continue to invest in our services. From originally offering treatments, we now support the NHS with diagnoses and screening too. Exciting innovations include the recent launch of the world’s largest mobile lung assessment unit in Manchester in partnership with Cobalt Health, bringing cancer screening and diagnosis closer to communities.”

help keep the wheels turning
The inside of a mobile cancer care unit.

Tina added: “The last few years have been incredibly difficult for the charity sector with individual donations down on average around 50%, as the cost-of-living crisis persists. This comes as cancer diagnoses continue to rise. As a charity we have remained incredibly agile to support our fundraisers and corporate partners, and, as a result, we’ve launched a ‘Special Edition Corporate Sponsorship Pack’ in honour of this event with unique ways for businesses to get involved. We’ve also designed a special edition Hope for Tomorrow brooch, which we will be proudly wearing at the Royal reception as a symbol of support.

“Fortunately, thanks to the generosity of everyone we have managed to continue to invest in our services. From originally offering treatments, we now support the NHS with diagnoses and screening too. Exciting innovations include the recent launch of the world’s largest mobile lung assessment unit in Manchester in partnership with Cobalt Health, bringing cancer screening and diagnosis closer to communities.”

help keep the wheels turning

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