Page 3 - Inspire

The James song ‘Sit Down’ would not be a normal way to
describe our charity, but there’s been nothing normal
about the last year.

“Had I not found Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation,”
Lee who came up with the analogy, explains, “we would
have muddled through Dad’s diagnosis and treatment;
we probably could have lived without it.

However, now I know it is there, and now I have
experienced the benefi ts of using it, I couldn’t imagine
getting through this without it. It has made this awful
experience that bit more bearable.”

Being diagnosed with lung cancer is confounding at the
‘best’ of times. Being diagnosed with lung cancer during a
global pandemic is on a whole other level.

When Lee’s dad, Laurie, was diagnosed in November
2020, the family was cast into a situation they had
never been in before. Without the support of a lung
cancer nurse specialist, as they would have had under
normal circumstances, Lee started to look for
information. It was then a little bell rang in his head…

“I’m 43, so I remembered Roy Castle on the telly. I was
pretty sure he died of cancer, so I Googled him. That’s
when I found Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. I
reached out and I am so relieved I did.

I spoke to Nicky, one of the nurses on the charity’s
helpline. I wasn’t entirely sure what to ask; I’m
completely new to this, but Nicky was fantastic. She told
me the answers before I even knew the questions!
The level of detail was very reassuring without being
overwhelming. We were on the phone for about an hour.
I never felt rushed, or that she was trying to wrap up the
” call to speak to someone else. By the end of it, I had all

the information I needed.

I’ve used the Ask the Nurse service many times since.
It’s such a personalised service, which is so important in
these diffi cult times.

I’m sure if Dad hadn’t been diagnosed in the middle of the
pandemic, a lot of our questions would have been
answered by our lung cancer nurse. But this is the reality
of the situation and, thankfully, the Ask the Nurse service
has bridged this gap. Nicky is an absolute diamond.”

Lee is just one of many people who have turned to us INSPIRE 2021
during the pandemic, with demand for our Ask the
Nurse service alone increasing by over 60%.
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