Macmillan and Cancerbackup merger

Today, all of our information has the highest level of quality assurance. Our Clinical Advisory Board is led by Professor Tim Eisen, Professor of Oncology at the University of Cambridge, and all patient information is accredited by the NHS.

Cancerbackup was founded in 1985 by Vicky Clement-Jones, who as a doctor found herself plunged into the maze of confusion when she was diagnosed with cancer. Shocked at the lack of information available to cancer patients, Vicky Clement-Jones set up Cancerbackup to ‘kick cancer out of the closet’. From the first few information booklets specifically written for cancer patients in the early days, the charity grew into the UK’s leading cancer information charity providing over 70 publications and a helpline staffed by cancer specialist nurses. Viewed as a lifeline by hundreds of thousands of cancer patients each year, Cancerbackup prided itself on being able to answer any question on any cancer.

Cancerbackup’s exemplary reputation for providing high quality information, through its award-winning publications and website and specialist nurse helpline, lives on today through its merger with Macmillan.

The merger has enabled Macmillan to provide comprehensive high quality, expertly developed information about cancer, and make it available to everyone who needs it. Our vision is for all people affected by cancer to have the information they want, when they want it and in a format they are comfortable with - and this is what we’ve been working towards since the merger:

• We now offer all former Cancerbackup information publications free of charge, not just to patients and their families, but to health and social care professionals too.  You can order them through our be.macmillan website . 
• The new website brings together the best of both sites, offering extensive cancer information , support services and the UK’s largest online cancer community .   
• Cancerbackup’s Cancer Information Nurse Specialists and Macmillan’s helplines have been brought together to create a new phone service . You can now ask one of our cancer support specialists any questions on any cancer, get emotional and practical support or benefits advice, simply by calling one number.