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FORCE Cancer Charity

Imagine getting a cancer diagnosis and having nowhere to turn for help. Fear, isolation, distress and uncertainty are just some of the overpowering emotions that come when you hear the words “you’ve got cancer.” How good would it be to know there’s a place where that burden can be shared? Luckily FORCE Cancer Charity is on hand in Exeter to support anyone whose life has been turned upside down by this dreadful disease. We’re here to help you and your loved ones through every step of a cancer diagnosis, its treatment and aftercare. We believe that local people deserve the very best support available as close as possible to where you live. And we think they should get that support free of any charge - life is hard enough when a diagnosis shatters your world.

 

FORCE has been around since 1987, making us one of the most trusted and respected charities in Devon.

 

We fund local research and buy equipment for the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital.

 

If you or someone you know has been treated for cancer in Exeter, they’ve almost certainly benefitted from £1.5 million worth of lifesaving apparatus bought by FORCE.

 

We work closely with the University of Exeter Medical School to support young cancer researchers with a commitment to funding students working in the field of oncology.

 

Our Cancer Support Centre in the grounds of the RD&E is a haven and place of sanctuary away from the clinical setting of the hospital. It’s open every weekday for patients and families needing physical, emotional, psychological and practical help.

 

Among the things available are counselling, one-to-one and group support, complementary therapies, benefits advice, relaxation and mindfulness sessions, exercise guidance and expertise on coping with hair loss.

 

We pioneered a successful programme of support for people in communities throughout Devon. Our dedicated staff worked in hospitals in Tiverton, Okehampton and Honiton where we also paid for the nurses who delivered lifesaving chemotherapy.

 

That programme is currently focussed on Ottery St Mary where we collaborated with staff from the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to establish a new cancer hub.

 

When many other cancer centres closed during the pandemic, we kept our doors open whenever we could and also offered online and telephone support to hundreds of vulnerable people.

 

COVID-19 restrictions and uncertainty devastated our traditional income streams with many events cancelled or postponed.

 

At the same time, the demand for our services is set to soar as the full impact of COVID emerges. We are bracing ourselves for a significant increase in the demand for support over the coming months.

 

FORCE has never been needed so much.

 

We receive no regular Government or NHS funding. We need to raise more than £1million every year to maintain support for people in our community. None of what we do would be possible without the generous support of local people, who help in so many ways – with donations, by taking part in fundraising events and coming along to the monthly Lord Mayor’s coffee mornings at the Guildhall.

 

Olly Watts, Acting Head of Income Generation said “We are incredibly grateful to have been selected as the Lord Mayor’s charity for 2023-24. FORCE must raise £1.7 million each year to continue supporting people affected by cancer but we can only achieve this goal together with your help and support.”  

 

For more information about the work of FORCE visit www.forcecancercharity.co.uk