Are you a patient or carer affected by cancer? Would you like to join us to help shape cancer services and improve early diagnosis across our region?

UCLH Cancer Collaborative is currently recruiting for patients and carers who would like to be involved in a number of exciting opportunities. These include innovative projects for early diagnosis, measuring quality of life after treatment, and looking at driving improvements in patient experience and outcomes for care pathways for specific cancer types.

You must be committed to working collaboratively and broadly representing the diverse views and needs of people affected by cancer. Participation in other cancer networks and people with links to community groups is considered really helpful.

Interested in finding out more?

If you are interested in any of the opportunities below, or if you would like to join our Patient and Carer Network to receive regular email updates about new opportunities to be involved with the UCLH Cancer Collaborative, please contact us to find out more. You can email uclh.getinvolvedwithcancer1@nhs.net or call 020 344 72779 or 07950 960 159.

1. Pathway Boards and Expert Reference Groups

We have several vacancies for people affected by cancer to join our Pathway Boards and Expert Reference Groups. You can find a list of all the vacancies on the website. 

Each Pathway Board looks at a specific type of cancer tumour (e.g. brain and spine, lung, colorectal and so on). They are responsible for driving improvement across the whole care pathway, from initial symptoms, through diagnosis, treatment, and living with and beyond cancer.

Each Expert Reference Group focuses on a cross-cutting topic, such as chemotherapy, psychosocial issues, or rehabilitation. They explore opportunities to improve patient outcomes and experience, and offer expert advice to the Pathway Boards. 

There are vacancies on the following Pathway Boards: Brain and Spine, Colorectal, Gynaecology, Haematology, Lung, and Upper Gastro-Intestinal (oesophago-gastric).

There are vacancies on the following Expert Reference Groups: Acute Oncology, Chemotherapy, Nursing, Psychosocial, Radiology, Radiotherapy, and Rehabilitation.

If you are interested in applying to be a patient representative, please read the following information and apply by midnight Sunday 28 January.

• list of vacancies on PBs and ERGs
• Role description
• Expression of Interest form
• Ways of Working
• Introduction to UCLH Cancer Collaborative

2. Patient Experience and User Involvement Steering Group

We are seeking applications for people affected by cancer who would like to join our Patient Experience and User Involvement Steering Group.

This group drives patient experience and user involvement work across the UCLH Cancer Collaborative, ensuring that the views of people affected by cancer are represented at the highest level.

We want to ensure that the group is representative of the NHS Trusts in the UCLH Cancer Collaborative and the population we cover. Therefore, we would particularly welcome applications from underrepresented Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) communities, and also from people who received cancer treatment from Barts Health NHS Trust, North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust, and Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust.

If you are interested in applying to join, please read the following information, which is also available on the UCLH Cancer Collaborative website:

• Role description
• Expression of interest form
• Ways of Working
• Introduction to UCLH Cancer Collaborative
• Reporting Structure
• Terms of Reference

You can also contact us on uclh.getinvolvedwithcancer1@nhs.net and we will em

The deadline to apply is midnight Sunday 28 January.

3. Quality of Life Pilot Steering Group

We are piloting a ground-breaking new tool for measuring quality of life for people affected by cancer. Currently, there is no measure to assess how well patients are supported after their cancer treatment. This tool will establish people’s quality of life and their needs, such as help at home or financial advice. We are looking for people affected by cancer who would like to join the Steering Group overseeing and shaping this pilot.

If you are interested, please read the flyer below and express your interest by 22 January 2018.

• Quality of Life Steering Group flyer
• Ways of Working

4. Multidisciplinary Diagnostic Centre (MDC) Steering Group

If a patient has vague, but concerning, symptoms (such as unexpected weight loss or persistent nausea), it can be difficult to ensure they are referred for the most appropriate tests quickly. Often they are sent back and forth between the GP and hospital, until a diagnosis is made.

To help these patients and to speed up diagnosis, UCLH Cancer Collaborative is currently piloting three Multidisciplinary Diagnostic Centres (MDCs) across the region for patients with vague symptoms that could indicate cancer. We are looking for people affected by cancer who would like to join the Steering Group overseeing this project.

If you are interested, please read the flyer below and express your interest by 22 January 2018.

• MDC Steering Group flyer
• Ways of Working