Gloucestershire Hospitals Receives Top Cancer Award
Gloucestershire Hospitals has scooped a national award for its commitment to patients living with incurable blood cancer.
"We are delighted to receive the Myeloma UK CSEP award. This is a huge achievement and a reflection of the hard work of the wider myeloma team."
Asha Johny, Consultant Haematologist
The hospital’s haematology team was presented today with the Myeloma UK Clinical Service Excellence Programme (CSEP) Award in recognition of its outstanding care and dedication to patients with myeloma, an incurable blood cancer which claims the lives of 3,000 people in the UK each year.
Staff were praised for their efforts to improve patients’ quality of life and eagerness to listen to their needs.
The accolade, awarded by blood cancer charity Myeloma UK, recognises hospitals’ commitment to raising the bar for treatment and providing compassionate care.
Asha Johny, Consultant Haematologist at Gloucestershire Hospitals, said: “We are delighted to receive the Myeloma UK CSEP award. This is a huge achievement and a reflection of the hard work of the wider myeloma team. We would not be able to deliver the excellent care that has been recognised by Myeloma UK, without the dedication of every member of the team working together.
“We will continue to strive to maintain the highest quality of care for all our patients, as they are at the heart of all we do.”
Myeloma is especially hard to spot as the symptoms are often vague and dismissed as ageing or other minor conditions.
By the time many patients are diagnosed their cancer has often advanced and they require urgent treatment. This can significantly impact their chances of survival and quality of life.
Monica Morris, Clinical Practice Services Senior Projects Officer at Myeloma UK, said: “Myeloma is a challenging cancer which keeps coming back and can be really difficult to cope with both physically and mentally, so we were hugely impressed with the hospital’s efforts to ease patients’ burden.
“The clinical trials unit, in particular, makes a tremendous difference to patients’ lives as, over time, myeloma becomes resistant to treatments. This means they’re heavily reliant on new experimental drugs to keep their cancer in check.
“Staff not only deliver outstanding care but they run masterclasses for local GPs to help them spot the tell-tale signs sooner and ensure patients get diagnosed as early as possible.
“To see the team going the extra mile day after day to give those affected by myeloma a fighting chance to live well with cancer is truly inspiring.”