Cancer care in Norway is in a different league to most countries. That's obvious.

The quality of care, of professionalism of a cultural desire to exceed expectations is embedded in both state and local provision. The majority of Norwegians trust the system implicitly.

But there is also a reluctance to talk about cancer - for it to be part of the natural, national conversation. Silence sits there too. And that means not all sectors of the community get the notice and the treatment they might wish for.

It is a curious contradiction...

Dr Patrycja Buxton has breast cancer and she'll live with the threat for the rest of her life. Born in Poland she now lives in Norway. She says her treatment could not possibly be questioned or faulted. But some workplace experiences left her confused and angry...

----------------------------------

Please Follow and Share this episode. Let's spread that cancer conversation and make a difference together.

Follow Mike on LinkedIn now.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikekinnaird/

She knew something wasn't right. At all. But getting her fears recognised took far longer than anticipated.

Time and again this mum in her 30s who'd just had baby number three was told she should really concentrate on the baby and stop worrying about her breast.

But she went back to her doctor again and again only to hear the same response. Finally out of frustration on all sides Sarah Drake was sent for a scan.

She had breast cancer...

That was 12 years ago and now after a double mastectomy her life has moved on and cancer is her life in a positive way. Today, Sarah runs a training company called Elephant In The Room that helps workplaces better support staff going through cancer.

In this episode, she shares her story — one of deep pain, growth, and ultimately, purpose. It’s a conversation about what it means to heal, to forgive, and to turn something incredibly difficult into something meaningful.

_________________________________________________

Elephant In The Room Training:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/eitrtraining/posts/?feedView=all

Follow Mike on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikekinnaird?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=android_app

Tired versus fatigue. Big difference. Did I know that? Absolutely not.

Thankfully Andy Mullaney realised that his 'tiredness' wasn't just overdoing it, or Covid jab after effects or just getting the other side of 60 years old.

It wasn't going away and he could sleep as long as you like and still feel exhausted. He documented what was happening for a few weeks and so did his wife. So when he did go to the doctor he could present hard evidence of what was happening.

Good job he did. Andy wasn't tired. He hadn't realised his 'fatigue' was bowel cancer...

----more----

Connect with Mike on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikekinnaird/

For more details of Andy's book:

https://troubador.co.uk/bookshop/self-help/didnt-anyone-ever-tell-you-its-all-a-game

Or contact Andy personally:

a.mullaney@sky.com

Breasts are a private matter. Talking about them, touching them, exposing them to examination. Photograph them? No. Absolutely not comfortable with any of that. At all. That’s not what we do.

And anyway. Breast cancer is a white woman problem - so it doesn’t affect me, does it?

Cultural conversations are just one part of the serious cancer conversation issue. The visual messaging relied on by much of the online and print media - even that of some charities - Invariably shows a white woman at a breast screening clinic. Rarely are those stock photos of a woman from black or Asian communities.

What exactly are those women supposed to think if they don’t recognise themselves thanks to lazy and potentially dangerous content? Why would they..?

Cancer presents itself differently, not all doctors know what to look for because it’s different to white skin, the images, culture, jargon and language - it’s a horrible mix of barriers that is still putting lives at risk. Which all sounds like a cliche mix until you talk with Dr Olubukola Ayodele.

Bookie, as she calls herself, is a Consultant Medical Oncologist and heads the Breast Cancer Unit at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust in the UK. It’s a large, strong ethnic community. She’s also Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Leicester. And along with very many published achievements and collaborations, she also sits on the European Cancer Organisation Inequalities Network.

Bottom line is. She’s tired of women being diagnosed too late because no one told them what cancer awareness actually means to them.

So, if anyone recognises the frustration, the inequality, the danger and the scale of the mountain still to climb, it’s Bookie Ayodele. She needs support herself - to get accurate information out there. There's a great deal to take in. Collectively, we can't keep ignoring this. You can help right now by downloading and sharing this episode.

Because the messaging on all sides is clearly very badly wrong.

_________________________________

More on Bookie Ayodele's research profile.

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Olubukola-Ayodele-2

#CancerCanDoOne is part of the Louth Run For Life charity in the UK which has so far raised £855,000 for Cancer Research UK.

#breastcancer #breastcancerawareness #ethniccancer #ethniccommunity #cancervoice #cancerdisparity

How do you explain what cancer is to children? How to do that with facts they can understand, in an every day way they can follow and without frightening them?

Jen and Nic meet by chance at a cancer convention. Jen is a teacher and designer and Nic a nurse. They hear suggestions made but they're not sure they're the answer. At all, in fact. Anyway, the two women keep in touch and that children-and-cancer thought keeps coming back. There must be a better way?

They had no idea they were about to create a lasting legacy with a series of bright, engaging cards which both parents and health professionals have raved about. The two friends had something else in common.

They were both married, had small children themselves and they had breast cancer.

Nic's husband Mat Owen picks up the story of that legacy that became - 'The Little C Club'.

----more----

Find out more about the Little C Club here:

Website: Littlecclub.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelittlecclub?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100048940663985

Dale was at the top of his game. Literally.

A six foot 3, rugby playing, in-demand career-smashing, fiercely intelligent man with unlimited prospects. The hours were madness and the workload immense but it was all about the future.

And that was on top of having an incredible, wonderful partner and two small children under five.

A family of love in those fabulous years when families slowly build, grow and enjoy new discoveries together every single day.

It would be difficult to better this in many ways.

And then life took hold. Out of nowhere, unwelcome, unannounced, it came with sheer vindictiveness. In Dale's case it had been strongly hinting for some time that it had earmarked him for challenges that would break most people in days. Creeping up, its intentions unidentified.

And then it happened. And it happened with a speed and force the rest of us could never comprehend. Dale’s partner, diagnosed with cancer. Dale is diagnosed. His mum dies. And this happens in a matter of weeks.

The race was on to consume as much information, research, knowledge and science as possible, as quickly as possible. Hundreds upon hundreds of documents, trials and errors.

This is Dale Atkinson’s story…

#cancercandoone #cancerawareness #cancerbattle #cancerfight #louthrunforlife #cancerresearchuk #cancerconversation #familylife #youngfamily #familystrength

We all know sleep is important. But if you have a chronic illness—or cancer—it's not just about feeling rested.

Sleep plays a direct role in treatment effectiveness, recovery, and overall health. Lack of sleep affects so many of us in the modern world and the working life culture of the West doesn't exactly help. Fancy an afternoon nap at work? Ridiculous waste of time. Except it isn't. The opposite, in fact as you're about to hear over the next 20 minutes.

The problem? Culturally too many see sleep as a waste of time in certain situations. Plus, sleep science is still in its infancy, and resources in the UK are shockingly limited.

In this episode, I sit down with Consultant Clinical Psychologist Dr Jill McGarry to break down the facts: why sleep matters more than you think, how poor sleep can impact some cancer treatments, and what practical steps patients can take today.

#cancercandoone #cancertreatments #poorsleep #lackofsleep #sleepscience #louthrunforlife #cancerawareness #chronicillness

What happens when cancer gets a sense of humour? And when a late autism diagnosis changes how some healthcare professionals see cancer care?

In this episode, we meet two men rewriting the script—literally. One through a fabulously funny, no-holds-barred blog about his incurable cancer experience, the other through a powerful new book unpacking autism, prostate cancer, and the gaps in some healthcare professionals' understanding.

Meet Martin Howell and Mac. Two men, two very different experiences—talking to Robins or taking a TV to bits to make a radio. Why? Well, you'll hear over the next 20 minutes.

Both reshaping how we think about illness, identity, and how we tell our stories.

----more----

Martin Howell's Blog

https://prostatecancer.me.uk

Mac's Book on Amazon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Late-Diagnosis-Autism-Diagnosed-Challenges/dp/1835634257

#prostatecancer #cancerawareness #pancreaticcancer #incurablecancer #menscancer #cancercandoone #louthrunforlife