More Men To Seek Extra Support

Thursday, 28 June 2012

Significantly less men than women who are affected by cancer are seeking extra support, according to Cancer Support Scotland. The charity’s latest statistics show in the six months from November 2011 to April 2012 72-percent of complementary therapy appointments were taken up by women; with only 28-perent of the services used by males.

Based at Gartnavel Hospital complex Cancer Support Scotland provides practical and emotional support for people affected by the disease, including family, friends and carers. This includes free of charge one-to-one complementary therapies, talking therapies and support groups.

The charity is now urging more men to seek extra support.

Service Manager Madaline Alexander said: “Our ratio doesn’t match the number of men that have cancer. Complementary therapies are not exclusively for women- they’re not beauty treatments but are there to make people feel better mentally and physically. I think men associate them with beauty treatments and they don’t realise the benefits. The therapies can help you alleviate stress for example. We get a lot of positive comments from men; once they overcome their first visit and experience the benefits they come back. We’ve seen a small rise recently but there’s a long way to go to see as many men using the services as women”.

One of the charity’s male service users is Bill Darroch from Croftfoot in Glasgow. 72-year-old Bill has been coming to Cancer Support Scotland since March of this year, along with his wife Cathie. He said: “Forget vanity or whatever, this is for helping your health. I relate it to cancer rather than making myself look good. I get massage and reflexology; it makes you feel better in body and mind. You come here and you feel normal. It’s helped to take away the stress. This gives me a better sleep and I’ve not had any pain since. It also gives you the confidence to get on with your life. In fact we’re going on holiday soon- which we haven’t done since the cancer started. Fear of cancer is in my mind at all times and this is the bit Cancer Support Scotland works on, it has helped to take away most of the fear”.

For more details on the work of Cancer Support Scotland and to find out more about the services we provide please call Freephone 0800 652 4531 or e-mail [email protected].