House proud – local employees help cancer charity
6 July 2007
Around thirty volunteers took part in a weekend makeover of a house in Amersham that was given to Brain Tumour UK as a gift at the beginning of the year.
The refurbishment work was carried out through a partnership of the Paradigm Housing Group, Connaught Plc, their staffs and their suppliers. The partnership was set up with the help of the Voluntary Action (Chiltern and South Bucks).
Jenny Baker, Chief Executive of Brain Tumour UK , said: “This is a fantastic gift and we are truly grateful to everybody who has supported us in this project. We are a small charity but our work has touched the lives of thousands of people over the past decade. The proceeds from the house will help us do even more. The diagnosis of a brain tumour is an extremely difficult time for patients and their families. Brain Tumour UK provides much-needed support in their battle against brain tumours.”
The house was in need of a major overhaul, including garden makeover, central heating, new kitchen and bathroom and double-glazed windows. Darren Corsby, Paradigm's project manager, said of their generous support: "This is our way of putting something back into the community. Brain Tumour UK is a very worthwhile charity and our staff and partners are delighted to be able to help'.
Brain Tumour UK , which is also trying to build a team of local volunteers to help with other actitivities, is expecting to sell the property when the work is complete. The money will be used to fund the invaluable work the charity does in supporting brain tumour patients and their families as well as funding medical research to advance treatments for the disease.
Martin Baker, Connaught 's account director for Paradigm, said: "Today has been a great effort by our volunteer staff and suppliers. Connaught is committed to working with our partners to put something back into our local communities to help people. Everyone involved on this project works hard every day so wouldn't it be great if we could help members of this community that may fall outside of our normal daily efforts?”
For further information (media only), please contact Ana Paula Nacif on 07951204999
Funding fears for new cancer drugs
10 April 2007
Brain tumour organisations fear that two therapies, officially recommended today, may still not reach some patients owing to the ‘post code lottery'.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has announced approval for temozolomide (Temodal) and carmustine implants (Gliadel wafers) to be funded by the NHS.
This brings England and Wales into line with most other developed countries, which already use these therapies as standard care in the treatment of patients newly diagnosed with a highly aggressive type of malignant brain tumour.
The organisations are calling on the new director of the Primary Care Trust Network, David Stout, to ensure that sufficient funding at PCT level should be set aside immediately to ensure patient access. NICE's appraisal of temozolomide and carmustine implants has already taken over two years.
Ella Pybus, speaking on behalf of a consortium made up of Brain Tumour UK , the International Brain Tumour Alliance, Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust and the United Brain Tumour Campaign said: “It will be a cruel blow if treatments for one of the most lethal of all cancers were further delayed because of lack of sufficient funding at PCT level.”
She added: “The NICE change of heart is a step in the right direction for people with brain tumours in England and Wales . But the excessive delay in appraising the therapies has already meant that some patients have missed out. More patients and families will suffer if funding can't be found quickly.
“These extremely aggressive brain tumours wait for no-one. We need assurances now that NICE's recommendations will be implemented uniformly across all of the PCTs so that people suffering from this devastating disease will not be further disadvantaged.”
NICE's original guidance in 2005 rejected both therapies on the basis of cost effectiveness. Many brain tumour specialists in the UK were so opposed to NICE's negative recommendation that they signed a joint letter to Secretary of State for Health Patricia Hewitt. Brain tumour patient groups mounted a rigorous and sustained campaign to try to reverse NICE's decision. A mistake in the way NICE calculated the cost effectiveness of one of the therapies prompted them to re-analyse their appraisal of both treatments which resulted in a reversal of their original guidance. Concern has also been expressed by the brain tumour organisations at the adoption by NICE of preconditions for eligibility which could exclude certain groups of patients.
For further information, contact: Ella Pybus, Brain Tumour UK , on 01787 374084
