Helping people affected by cancer

PCFA Receives a Dry July Foundation Grant

The Dry July Foundation was pleased to award Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) a grant in 2017 towards the Prostate Cancer Specialist Nursing (PCSN) program.

Prostate cancer is too frightening to face alone. Our expert nurses provide coordinated support throughout the entire prostate cancer journey; taking into account physical, emotional, psychological and social needs of men and their families.

Patients often tell PCFA that they need "an opportunity to talk through [their] diagnosis beyond what is available in a standard 15-minute consult with a urologist". Specialist nurses can help patients and their families to understand their diagnosis, what to expect and connect them with services to address the challenges that they...

Exercise Therapy at Barwon Health

Warrnambool resident Tony always considered himself fit and healthy, so he wasn’t concerned when he started experiencing unexplained tiredness and blood in his urine. His son, however, was not happy with this assumption and urged Tony to see his GP.

After a number for tests and specialist appointments, the 65-year-old was called into the clinic to meet with his doctor.

“As soon as I looked at her, I felt a shiver down my spine,” he said.

“She sat me down and said I had Acute Leukaemia. You could have knocked me down with a feather.

“She told me with about two months of chemo I had about a 40 per cent chance of remission.”

However, all Tony could think about was his family.

“I just didn’t know how to deal with this,” he said.

“I thought to...

Saving patients travel time and costs at The Royal Melbourne Hospital

On behalf of the staff and patients at The Royal Melbourne Hospital, thank you so much for the grant for the oncolology telemedicine room. The project is now complete.

The telehealth team were honoured to be offered the opportunity to facilitate innovation of care delivery for oncology outpatients through funding from the Dry July Foundation.

With the generous support of the Dry July donation we have been able to purchase several key pieces of infrastructure to enable easy access to videoconferencing for our oncology patients.

In addition to telehealth being available in every outpatient room, the oncology team can also perform multidisciplinary meetings in their usual group meeting rooms via videoconference. Professor Kate Drummond...

First patient to be given the gift of saving their hair

Thanks to funds raised by last year's Dry July participants, St Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne have purchased one of the first scalp cooling caps available to public patients in Victoria.

The cap reduces the risk of hair loss during chemotherapy by decreasing scalp temperature and blood flow to hair follicles.

Afaf Shenouda couldn’t believe her luck when she was told she would be the first patient to be treated with a scalp cooling cap during her chemotherapy treatment at St Vincent’s.

‘How lucky am I to receive this treatment?’ Afaf says. ‘I’m so grateful to the donors who have given me the opportunity to keep my hair.’

‘It feels and sounds like rain, like it’s hailing on my head,’ Afaf explains, when the cap was first turned on. Afaf...

Glenda's Story - Barwon Health Foundation Volunteer Gives Back

At 55, Glenda was a fit and healthy marketing consultant relishing in the joys of becoming a grandmother for the first time. It was the discovery of a small, painless lump in her throat that changed Glenda’s life.

“Eighteen days after surgery to remove the lump I had a massive bleed requiring hospitalisation to cauterise it. As I was going under, I was told I might not live through the operation but thankfully I did,” Glenda said.

“I had 35 rounds of radiation therapy simultaneously with chemotherapy over seven weeks. After the tonsil was removed, I had a PEG tube inserted into my stomach to allow me to have a high protein liquid food. It remained there for eight months. During this period I was unable to eat solid foods for most of...

Car for Barwon Health

Patients will now have a brand new car to get to their appointments at Barwon Health thanks to a brand new car funded by the Dry July Foundation.

The new car has been added to the Volunteer Transport Program at Barwon Health and will help those patients who need assistance to reach their life-saving appointments and treatment at Barwon Health's Andrew Love Cancer Centre.

In 2017, Dry July donated more than $154,000 for the comfort and care of cancer patients at Barwon Health. Some of the items funded this year have included exercise therapy, a patient art program, music therapy, nutrition support and edible gardens, carer support and massage.

Dry July Foundation CEO & Co-Founder, Brett Macdonald, believes the new car will make a big...

Dry July Tea Trolley

Volunteers at the Canberra Region Cancer Centre run a hospitality tea trolley providing a choice of tea, coffee, hot chocolate and a biscuit for patients as they wait for treatment. Dry July monies are used to purchase the trolley supplies.

What a lovely idea!

“I leave home early in the morning to get to my appointment, so a welcome cup of coffee is something I look forward to. So appreciative of being offered tea/coffee while being treated. Thank you so much”

“I always look forward to the Dry July Tea Trolley coming around. A cuppa and a biscuit helps pass the time. Seeing the Dry July Tea Trolley come around is much appreciated and the highlight of a long day having treatment”

Continued Funding for Chemotherapy Diaries

Andrew Love Cancer Centre continues to provide diaries to patients who are attending chemotherapy treatment to assist with their scheduling of appointments both medical and personal to alleviate the stress of the complex appointment schedules. These diaries have been made possible through Dry July funding for a few years now.

Emily, pictured here, says 'During my treatment I have found the diary really useful during my chemotherapy and subsequent surgery for keeping track of appointments and phone numbers for any questions I have during my treatment journey.'

Guide for Mums with Cancer

Having cancer is pretty awful for anyone, but having cancer when you are a Mum is really different. Mummy’s Wish helps families navigate a practical pathway through treatment to help reduce the burden and negative impact on young families.

Dry July has funded the development of a Guide For Mums With Cancer which will enable Mummy’s Wish to capture all of the valuable knowledge of our Support Coordinators, like Ali, so that our Mums can easily access information when, and in a format, that suits them. The guide will also be an invaluable resource for hospital social workers and cancer care coordinators.

You can view the Guide For Mums With Cancer here: https://mummyswish.org.au/guide-for-mums-with-cancer/

MEET ALISON

Alison is one of our...