No young person should face cancer alone

Francesca was 14 when she was diagnosed with cancer. It turned her entire world, and her family’s, upside down. 

Francesca, a young person with cancer

She went through 4 rounds of chemotherapy, contracted sepsis, lost her hair, eyelashes and eyebrows. At one point her weight dropped to under 4 stone and she couldn’t even stand up by herself.

Teenage Cancer Trust’s specialised nursing and youth support teams understand the challenges that teenagers and young people with cancer face and the care they give is so vital to young people like Francesca.

Francesca is due to finish her treatment in September, and we will continue to give her and her family all the support they need. 

I spent some time on children’s wards closer to home when I had infections and I was surrounded by babies and little kids. I didn’t realise how much the Teenage Cancer Trust unit matters and the difference it makes until I was on a normal children’s ward without any of those facilities. 

Francesca
Nikki, Francescas Mum

At the start you hand your child over and say ‘please make them better’ the level of trust you have in them is insane. There was an immediate feeling of being engulfed in a big hug. Whatever problem we went to them with they were like: ‘we’ve got this’.

Nikki, Francesca’s mum

About us

Every day, seven young people aged 13-24 hear the words “you have cancer”. They will each need specialised nursing care and support to get them through the toughest times they may have faced. We’re the only UK charity meeting this vital need.

Teenage Cancer Trust is a registered charity: 1062559 (England & Wales), SC039757 (Scotland).

28

Specialist units in NHS hospitals across the UK

£9.5m

Invested in life-changing cancer services, during 2020

92

Funded Teenage Cancer Trust Nurses and Youth Support Coordinators