Prehabilitation resources for healthcare professionals
From podcasts to physical activity guides, we have resources to help professionals support people with cancer as they prepare for treatment.
On this page
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Coronavirus guidance for health professionals
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Prehabilitation principles and guidance
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Prehabilitation podcasts
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Physical activity resources
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Join online specialist group
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10 top tips for primary care
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Innovation in cancer care resources
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Clinical updates for healthcare professionals
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Research and evidence
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For your patients
Coronavirus guidance for health professionals
We understand it's a challenging time for healthcare professionals. That's why we're doing whatever it takes to support you with the latest information, training and resources during the COVID-19 pandemic.
You can also access our emotional health and well-being hub to learn about all the ways we're here for you.
Prehabilitation principles and guidance
We have developed our principles and guidance for prehabilitation with the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the National Institute for Health Research Cancer, and Nutrition Collaboration.
The principles and guidance will help you to:
- advance cancer care provision
- include prehabilitation in the cancer pathway.
- inform service provision and development
- inform and support a change policy.
Prehabilitation podcasts
We spoke to professionals and people living with cancer to understand their experiences of prehabilitation. You can hear what they told us in our series of podcasts.
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Podcasts by people living with cancer
We spoke to Della, Clive and Jenny, who are living with cancer. In the podcasts below, they share their thoughts and experiences about prehabilitation.
- Listen to Della and Clive's podcast (13 minutes)
- Listen to Jenny's podcast (8 minutes)
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Podcasts by professionals
We spoke to leading cancer experts about the role of prehabilitation in cancer care. In the podcasts below, they describe the benefits of exercise, nutrition, psychological support and behaviour change. They also give an overview of consensus statements and share their vision for the future of prehabilitation for people with cancer.
- Listen to Professor Sandy Jack's podcast (15 minutes)
- Listen to Professor Rob Copeland's podcast (17 minutes)
- Listen to Dr Clare Shaw's podcast (19 minutes)
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Webinars
Macmillan Cancer Support in collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) hosted a recent webinar focused on improving the understanding and knowledge of prehabilitation for healthcare professionals to support people living with cancer. The session included Professor Sandy Jack providing an update on the latest research in prehabilitation and our own Lead Nursing and AHP Adviser June Davis discussing the role of the Macmillan/BMS partnership.
Physical activity resources
We want everyone living with cancer to get the support and inspiration they need to be physically active, in a way that's right for them.
Physical activity can help people living with cancer:
- manage their symptoms
- improve their quality of life and clinical outcomes
- prevent treatment side effects
- reduce the risk of recurrence.
You can learn more about these benefits in our physical activity guidance. We have separate physical activity guidance for patients with metastatic bone disease.
We also have a service implementation guide and sports toolkit to help professionals develop or signpost patients to a physical activity service.
Join online specialist group
The Q Perioperative Care-Prehabilitation Special Interest Group (SIG) is hosted by Macmillan Cancer Support and the Centre for Perioperative Care (CPOC), a partnership between health charities, professional organisations, patient organisations and several leading Royal Colleges.
The specialist Interest group is one of a large number of different specialist interest groups that can be accessed on the Health Foundation website.
Our initial focus for this SIG will be on prehabilitation and rehabilitation, specifically supporting and optimising peoples’ physical and mental health in advance of, during and beyond treatment for cancer and other long-term conditions. Anyone can join the group for free, find out more about the key goals and how to join.
10 top tips for primary care
We've created our 10 top tips series to help primary care professionals support patients at every stage of the cancer pathway. The tips are designed to showcase best practice and offer practical advice for your role.
We have tips for prehabilitation, which include:
Innovation in cancer care resources
We invest in programmes and services to help professionals adopt new and innovative ways to deliver cancer care in the UK. Working in communities and with the NHS, we fund pilots to improve experiences and outcomes for people with cancer. With this knowledge, we have created tools and resources to help you deliver:
Clinical updates for healthcare professionals
Stay up to date with the latest developments in cancer care, with expert news, opinion and analysis. You'll also find blogs about our professionals and the fantastic work they do.
Subscribe to our newsletters
We publish a range of newsletters for professionals who support people living with cancer. Whatever your role, we'll support you with clinical updates, tools and resources.
Research and evidence
We're at the forefront of understanding the needs and experiences of people living with cancer. Get the evidence and insight you need to develop or deliver best practice in cancer care, delivered by our team of experts.