Families who are hit by a wave of extra costs when their child’s cancer comes back are to get extra financial help, thanks to Morrisons and CLIC Sargent, the UK’s leading charity for young cancer patients and their families.
The announcement comes after a new report from CLIC Sargent revealed that a quarter of its social care staff’s workload is spent working with young cancer patients who have relapsed.
The report, Cancer Costs Again, released ahead of World Cancer Day on Monday 4 February, highlights the emotional and financial impact on families when a child or young person’s cancer comes back.
Families currently receive a grant from CLIC Sargent towards the immediate costs when their child is initially diagnosed with cancer. It helps cover expenses such as travel to hospital, parking, childcare and extra food costs.
Now thanks to £50,000 funding from Morrisons, CLIC Sargent will be able to give families a second grant if the cancer returns after treatment.
News of the second grant was welcomed by Rachel and Duncan Larkman, from Crediton, Devon. Their daughter Jasmine, now 16, was diagnosed with leukaemia when she was seven and it returned when she was ten.
“This is going to be a huge help for families,” said Rachel. “The last thing you want to be worrying about when you get the news that cancer has come back is money. The money side of things is a nightmare.”
CLIC Sargent is Morrisons’ charity partner and the partnership has so far raised more than £6 million. Colleagues across the country are gearing up for a weekend of fund raising to mark World Cancer Day.
Customers will be able to snap up ‘Bands Against Cancer‘ for a suggested donation of £2 and colleagues are planning a wide variety of fund-raising events and collections.
Tracy Cosgrave, the CLIC Sargent’s Associate Director of Services, welcomed Morrisons’ continued support and said the new grants would make a big difference to families facing escalating expenses when cancer returns.
“Sadly, for some young people and their families, cancer costs more than once: more travel costs, energy bills, depression, anxiety, and loneliness,” said Tracey. “These costs come at a time when they’re often still dealing with the financial fall-out from their first diagnosis and trying to cope with cancer forcing them to put their lives on hold again.
“We’re extremely grateful that, with Morrisons’ help, we’re able to give families who find themselves in this position a second grant. On behalf of the families, we would like to thank all the Morrisons customers who will be supporting us.”
David Scott, Head of Corporate Affairs at Morrisons, said: “We’re delighted that the generosity of our colleagues and customers is funding such an important grant.”
