Project Youth Cancer

Project Youth Cancer supports teenagers and young adults with cancer, throughout their treatment and beyond.

Our teenage years are unique to every other stage of our lives. It’s the bridge between childhood and adulthood. At a time when these young people are tasting independence and looking forward to adult life, a cancer diagnosis is its most cruel.

Around 2,300 young people aged 13-24 are diagnosed with cancer every year in the UK. Imagine being a teenager or young adult and having to juggle the unique challenges that this time brings – on top of dealing with a cancer diagnosis and the huge impact of treatment.

The far-reaching impact of cancer does not end when treatment ends. The impact of a cancer diagnosis can continue for many years, especially with the impact on mental health. Project Youth Cancer pledges to be there to support teenagers and young adults with cancer, throughout their treatment and beyond.

The charity provides bespoke care for young people with cancer, which includes a new one-to-one counselling service for young patients, so they have somewhere to talk freely when they are protecting loved ones from the harsh reality of their illness and treatment. They may benefit from having some special holistic therapies as a treat or as a distraction which we offer as a charity. They may be eligible for scalp cooling, which is a process used during chemotherapy to prevent hair loss, which is now being made available to our age through our partnership with Paxman.

Like so many things in life, cancer care is not a one size fits all and as we evolve as an organisation, we are ensuring that young patients are treated as individuals and are treated as a whole – body and mind.