New cancer centre cuts need for 160-mile round trip

Sophie was diagnosed with cancer in 2018 and says Maggie's is a place to "forget about the anxiety"

A breast cancer patient has welcomed a new support centre in Wales after the previous closest for one for some people was a 160-mile round trip.

Sophie, 53, from Anglesey, has stage four breast cancer and uses the Manchester Maggie's to break up the long journey she has to take for treatment.

On Thursday, Maggie's opens its newest centre at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd in Bodelwyddan, Denbighshire, which will provide help and support to cancer patients and their loved ones.

Previously, the closest one was in Wirral, north-west England, but Sophie said this new centre would bring "peace and lots of pleasure" closer to home, helping "make every day count".

While she will continue to use the Manchester centre while having treatment there, Sophie is looking forward to using the north Wales Maggie's for support.

Sophie was diagnosed in 2018 and said the specialist could not tell her how much longer she had to live, leaving her wondering if it "could be within days or weeks".

After initial treatment in Bangor, Gwynedd, she was told her options were "running out" and was offered a place on a clinical trial at The Christie in Manchester, which she still attends.

The two-hour journey for treatment in Manchester means the day begins at 04:00 for her and husband Henry so she can arrive at hospital by 08:00 - sometimes not leaving until 22:00.

Her treatment started during the Covid pandemic, when family members were not allowed inside the hospital, meaning Henry "had to stay in the car from morning until night" in the middle of winter.

But when a nurse told them of a Maggie's on site, their lives changed.

Henry used the facilities and stayed warm while she had gruelling chemotherapy before Sophie started using the centre too, initially to "forget about the anxiety".

Maggie's staff give advice and support and Sophie shared her experiences with other patients and discovered the centre offered classes - from yoga to writing and make-up.

Sophie said, without the centre, the arduous journey would be "even more difficult because I can't really rest well in the car".

"Maggie's is a place where we can really go and relax before coming home," she added.

But it was the garden that nature-lover Sophie fell in love with: "We have seen Maggie's garden for three seasons now... for us, that's hope."

Sophie says the garden at Maggie's in Manchester gives her hope as she watches the seasons change

The importance of being able to access services locally hit home when she overheard a conversation at the Manchester centre two years ago.

A woman was "sobbing" after being told doctors could do nothing else to help her and she would be sent home.

"She said she's not just sad there was no more treatment... but also the fact she's going to go home, be on her own, because... there's nothing in north Wales like Maggie's, where she could just go and talk to somebody that understands her," said Sophie.

She believes the north Wales centre will allow people "to get away from the fear or the worry or the anxiety that you're going through with cancer treatment, or if you've just lost somebody due to cancer".

She added: "I can't imagine what it would be like without Maggie's for the past few years."

The north Wales Maggie's centre recieved a £4m donation from the Steve Morgan Foundation

Jules Peters, wife of The Alarm singer Mike Peters, who died in April, said she was "really excited" about the north Wales Maggie's, which was "long overdue".

"I'm hoping that we'll have a little Mike Peters corner with a guitar and I'd like to introduce yoga," she said.

In the final months of his life, Mike - who was from Denbighshire - was also treated at Christie's in Manchester.

While she remains "forever grateful" to them, Jules added: "The emotional pressure of travelling backwards and forwards from north Wales to the city, it was very tough, on top of an extremely tough situation.

"So, the more that we can have in north Wales, the better."

The new Maggie's centre includes a garden for patients and families to enjoy

Kevin Owen from Bangor also says Maggie's has been life-changing for him after the 61-year-old was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer.

"I had the usual symptoms, blood in my stool, but being a typical man I ignored it. I eventually got treated," he said.

Surgery left him with a permanent colostomy, but he is now free of any evidence of cancer.

He said it was after his treatment, when he was trying to get back to normal, that he really appreciated the help at Maggie's.

"When I had to stop working I had an hour and a half session with the councillors there because I realised I wasn't OK," he said.

"I started attending a drum along group, which was good for stress, and it was just nice to actually talk to people who understood."

He struggles with fatigue and discovered many other people at the centre who suffered with it too.

"It was really nice to get the tips and tricks that they shared to get through things, so it's just been life changing for me, and almost like having a safe haven to go to, where people get it and understand," he said.

Kevin Owen says Maggie's was a huge help after his treatment, when he was trying to get back to normal life

The new Maggie's is the third in Wales and received £4m from the Steve Morgan foundation, named after the founder of Flintshire-based housebuilder Redrow.

Steve Morgan said he "fell in love with the concept" and saw the good work done at Maggie's when his wife had breast cancer.

"I know this centre will be such a life saver for hundreds if not thousands of people going forward," he said.

The charity, founded by Maggie Keswick Jencks, opened its first centre in 1996 and now offers free support to anyone with cancer, as well as their family and friends.

Dame Laura Lee, chief executive of Maggie's, said: "With growing numbers of people living with cancer it is vital that this support is in place for people in the local area."