BCC can't yet offer email support for secondaries

Public Archive
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Email support is mentioned here
breastcancercare.org.uk/one-one-peer-support-email
In answer to a question, I just received this reply (slightly edited) :
Thanks for your message. The email support is part of our One to One Peer Support Service and unfortunately at this time we are only able to offer this service to people with primary breast cancer.

Until a few years ago we did have a small scale phone support service for people with secondary breast cancer but unfortunately we had to suspend it because we only had a small number of volunteers which meant that we were often unable to offer the service and as a result we couldn’t promote it widely which in turn meant limited interest. It’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation but to offer such a service properly requires significant which the organisation currently doesn’t have.

I know you’ve experienced problems with the online forums and hopefully you’re aware that these are being rebuilt. Have you also tried live-chat? There’s a dedicated session for people with secondaries every Tuesday from 8.30-9.30. See www.breastcancercare.org.uk/livechat

We’ve also expanded our face to face services for people with secondary breast cancer over the last couple of years - you could consider coming along to one of these sessions? Check www.breastcancercare.org.uk.lwsbc to see what’s coming up near to you.

With best wishes
Sylvia
She also mentiioned that BCC is open to offers of volunteers who could give support to those of us living with secondary bc.
This all started because I am so frustrated that on these forums I CANNOT use search to find threads about the chemotherapy I am due to begin this week.

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Bumpbumpbump…

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I was a Peer Support volunteer with BCC for a number of years, but once my secondary diagnosis was confirmed, I was told that I could no longer offer peer support, as the secondary service had been stopped because volunteers weren’t able to commit on a regular basis due to effects of tx, etc. It seems a real shame to me, especially given that some people get periods of stability which might allow them to support others.

Not sure how what I was told fits in with what you were told about BCC being “open to offers of volunteers who could give support to those of us living with secondary bc”. Or does that mean people who’ve had a primary dx trying to support those of us with secondaries?

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It’s lucky we can give each other support in this forum, as it seems we won’t get it anywhere else.