Crosby’s Soroptimists will help in a fundraising campaign to provide a groundbreaking advancement in ovarian cancer treatment for women.
Kate Davis (Head of Fundraising at Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust) spoke to members – and guests from SI Liverpool and SI Southport – about the hospital’s charity and its latest major project.
Liverpool Women’s Charity (LWC) works to raise funds on behalf of the Trust to provide services and equipment extra to those funded by the NHS. These include accommodation for parents staying with very sick babies; separate rooms in the gynaecological ward for women experiencing miscarriages; a bereavement suite for parents of a stillborn baby; and peer support for bereaved fathers. These enhancements make a big difference to the comfort and well-being of patients – women, babies and their families.
SI Crosby has supported LWC in the past. The Liverpool City Region is so fortunate to be served by “the specialist health provider of choice in Europe for women, babies and families” (hospital website). Soroptimist President Pat Williams is therefore keen to work in partnership with LWC once again.
The charity is fundraising for a HIPEC (Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy) machine that will serve women throughout the region. This highly specialised treatment is available for people with certain abdominal cancers – including ovarian – who meet the strict criteria. It works by adding a heated chemotherapy drug into the abdomen during surgery to remove the tumour. The drug is removed before the surgery ends. HIPEC is available in only a handful of centres in the UK.
Crosby members have already agreed to allocate a portion of this year’s fundraising to the HIPEC campaign. At the planning stage with LWC is a ‘wellness’ day for women next spring. Anything else? Watch this space!