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About Macmillan

Photograph of girl wearing a Macmillan green cancer wristband

Macmillan Cancer Support improves the lives of people affected by cancer. One in three of us will get cancer. 1.2 million of us are living with it. We are all affected by cancer. We can all help. We are Macmillan.

As treatments improve, more and more people are living with cancer in their daily lives. This means they need more than medical help, they also need practical, emotional and financial support.

We are a source of support

We are a source of support, helping with all the things that people affected by cancer want and need. It's not only patients who live with cancer, so we also help carers, families and communities. We guide people through the system, supporting them every step of the way. We fund nurses and other specialist health care professionals and build cancer care centres. But we give so much more than medical help.

People need practical support at home, so we provide anything from some precious time off for a carer, to a lift to hospital. People need emotional support, so we listen, advise and share information though our CancerLine, website, support groups and trained professionals. People need financial help to cope with the extra costs cancer can bring, so we give benefits advice, and grants for anything from heating bills to travel costs. Together we listen, we learn, we act to help people live with cancer.

We are a force for change

We are a force for change, listening to people affected by cancer and working together to improve cancer care. People who live with cancer are experts by experience. Together we use this knowledge to make a positive difference to the lives of people affected by cancer. This could be anything from getting a coffee machine installed in a waiting room, to bringing about changes in the law.

We fight discrimination - from challenging unfair travel costs and insurance policies to improving the national benefits system. Together we challenge the status quo, we push for change, we lead the way.

We are Macmillan

We believe we can all help. We can raise money - through marathons, coffee mornings, street collections, sponsored events. We can give time - at cancer care centres, events, fundraising groups. We can share experiences - online, in the media, with each other.

We are Macmillan.

About our Schools and Youth programme

Macmillan's Schools and Youth programme has been developed by teachers, children and young people, educationalists and cancer specialists.

We aim to support the growing needs of the school community regarding cancer issues. From providing informative teaching resources to local speakers for school presentations, we want to raise awareness of cancer, how we help, how young people can reduce their chances of getting the illness and how schools can get involved.

If you'd like to know more, please contact us.

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Getting involved