Living with Lung Cancer

The support is out there

There’s good evidence that joining a support group helps many people with cancer feel less depressed and anxious. Support groups may help you cope better with your emotions and feel more hopeful. And, by talking with people in similar circumstances, you can get – and give – practical information and advice.

How do support groups work?

Some groups are for anyone with any cancer or their loved ones, some just cover lung cancer. Some are for carers of people with lung cancer – people looking after you often want support too.

There are self-help groups, organised by members, and there are professionally led groups where, for example, a counsellor, social worker, or psychologist leads the conversation. Many groups invite guest speakers, such as doctors, to talk about aspects of your illness.

Watch this Roy Castle video on support groups:

Find a group near you

Most cancer charities and many other organisations run or sponsor support groups or drop-in centres suitable for people with lung cancer. Your lung cancer nurse specialist or local social services will know of groups near you. Here are a few links to help you find a group:

• Roy Castle Foundation support groups

• Macmillan support groups

• British Lung Foundation support groups

• NHS Choices cancer support directory

• Maggie’s Centres

• Carers UK local support groups

Online communities

Forums, communities and ‘chat rooms’ on the internet let you read questions, answers and conversations between members. You can post your own questions or comments and offer answers to others. Most sites require you to register before you can post anything, but they are free.

Some people find sensitive subjects easier to discuss online than face-to-face. Many join both online communities and ‘real world’ support groups.

Find an online community

• Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation community at HeathUnlocked

• Macmillan lung cancer community

• Maggie’s online community

• British Lung Foundation lung cancer group at HealthUnlocked

• Cancer Chat forum at Cancer Research UK

• Carers UK online forum

Got a question? Try the phone

Telephone helplines let you talk to trained staff or cancer nurses about anything that’s bothering you, whether you have lung cancer or are worried about someone who has it. They can give advice and suggest next steps. Here are some numbers:

• Roy Castle Foundation - 0800 358 7200 (9am-5pm Monday-Friday)

• Cancer Research UK - 0808 800 4040 (9am-5pm Monday-Friday)

• Macmillan Support Line - 0808 808 00 00 (9am-8pm Monday to Friday)

• Maggie’s - 0300 123 1801 (9am-5pm Monday-Friday)

• Tenovus - 0808 808 1010 (8am-8pm every day)

From running for fun to running for funds

Ultra-long-distance runner Lucy Zirbser was training in 2015 for a series of 100-mile races when she began to have a problem with her shoulder – and it turned out she had lung cancer. “The diagnosis left me shaken but, after the initial wobble, I knew I wanted to continue running,” she says. And she did, completing more than a dozen marathons and other races while on a targeted therapy. She ran the 2016 London Marathon to raise funds for the Roy Castle Foundation.

Read Lucy’s story on the Roy Castle website

And finally …

Thanks for following the Living with Lung Cancer navigator program. We hope you’ve found it useful and have learnt a lot about what you can do to live well for longer.

If you want to do more in the battle to beat lung cancer, consider signing up with the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. The charity runs numerous fundraising events you could take part in but has many more ways for you to get involved, including through the patient advocate scheme for people who have, or have had, lung cancer or have cared for someone with the disease. As a patient advocate you could tell your own story, get involved in campaigning, run awareness events, take part in consultations and much more.

• Find out more about getting involved at the Roy Castle Foundation website