The Greater Manchester Cancer Podcast

In 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 Penine 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 disabilites in all aspects of their cancer journey. 

Links from this episode:

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/ 

People First (Tameside)

In the second 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 screening, especially bowel cancer screening and ask; Where are we seeing inequalities? Which groups of people are struggling to complete screening tests? And what are we doing to tackle the inequalities that exist?

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/ 

People First (Tameside)

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 rep on the health inequalities board 

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? 

We also talk about the plans and strategies to combat these challenges including, Core20plus5, the GM ICP strategy and finally the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance strategy and ask 'how do they all fit together?'

We’d love to hear from you – what are your views on the topics discussed today? Please visit www.gmcancer.org.uk/podcast and send us a message or check out GM Cancer on social media.

Links from this episode:

NHS Long Term Plan - NHS Long Term Plan

Core 20 Plus 5 NHS England » Core20PLUS5 – An approach to reducing health inequalities for children and young people

Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership Strategy - Improving health and care in Greater Manchester | Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership (gmintegratedcare.org.uk) 

Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership Joint Forward Plan Joint Forward Plan | Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership (gmintegratedcare.org.uk)

Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership Fairer Health for All Framework - Fairer Health for All | Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership (gmintegratedcare.org.uk)

10GM: Home (10gm.org.uk)

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 

Julie Moran- Lead Nurse,  Denton PCN 

Tracy Cowburn- Cancer Care Coordinator

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 

Find out more about the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance here

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: 

The Greater Manchester Cancer Academy
Find out more about the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance here

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.

Find out more about the ACCEND Framework

We’d love to hear from you – what are your views on the topics discussed today? Please visit www.gmcancer.org.uk/podcast and send us a message.

This episode is the first in a series of four episodes looking at work going on in Greater Manchester, specifically to support and develop the cancer workforce. 

Future episodes will take an in depth look at some of the roles within cancer care, both new and existing, as well as how we’re developing a culture of lifelong learning to help everyone reach their full potential and deliver amazing care. 

But first – what’s our strategy when it comes to attracting and retaining the workforce, and why do we need one? 

Host Steve Bland is joined by:
Suzanne Lilley, Programme Director, Workforce and Education (GM Cancer Alliance)
Christopher Buckley, Head of Greater Manchester Workforce Bureau, GM ICP
Gemma Butterworth, Trainee Advanced Clinical Practitioner at The Christie

Find out more about the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance here

Links from this episode: 

The Greater Manchester Cancer Workforce Strategy

Greater Manchester Integrated Care People and Culture Strategy

More about Digital Staff Passports

Greater Manchester Wellbeing Toolkit

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.

For more information about GM Cancer click here.

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.

For more information about GM Cancer click here.

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.

For more information about GM Cancer click here.