Gemma Peters announced as new CEO of Macmillan Cancer Support

Macmillan Cancer Support has announced that Gemma Peters, currently Chief Executive of Blood Cancer UK, will be its new CEO.

Peters said: “I am delighted to be joining the brilliant Macmillan team, having long admired and personally seen Macmillan’s impact for families affected by cancer.

“Building a strong organisation that ensures the voices of people living with cancer are heard has been central to my time at Blood Cancer UK and I feel very lucky and proud to be able to build on that at Macmillan, whose mission has never been more important.”

Peters joins Macmillan following almost twenty years of experience in health and cancer care in leadership, advocacy and fundraising roles. Including at Blood Cancer UK, King’s Health Partners, King’s College London and Mencap.

Macmillan’s Chair of Trustees, Richard Murley, said: “We are excited by the leadership Gemma will bring to take Macmillan forward at this critical time for cancer treatment and care. During the recruitment process, trustees, colleagues and people living with cancer were impressed by Gemma’s passion, her deep knowledge of cancer care, her strategic insight and track record leading effective and inclusive organisations.”

Peters will move into her new role in January, and takes over from Macmillan’s current CEO Lynda Thomas, whose decision to step down from the charity at the end of 2022 and move into non-executive roles was announced in the spring.