TV Presenter Julia Bradbury joins BBC Asian Network star Nish Monsur, Attitude’s LGBTQ hero of 2021 Brad Gudger, Ben Hughes, brother to Love Island star Chris Hughes, and GP Dr Anisha Patel to discuss Cancer Research UK’s Cancer Care Collection and what most helped them get through their own cancer experiences.

For those going through treatment for cancer, whether it’s radiotherapy or chemotherapy, it can be difficult to find the right products that fully address the issues that cancer patients are faced with. Cancer Research UK’s Cancer Care Collection offers a handpicked selection of items curated in consultation with nurses and patients, made available online for all stages and types of cancer treatment and recovery.

The Cancer Care Collection is available through Cancer Research UK’s online store and hosts a range of specially selected skin and body care products, designed to help soothe the skin and alleviate the effects of radiation and chemotherapy, providing comfort when it’s needed most. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy can affect your skin, hair and nails, making them drier, more brittle and more sensitive, so the range features soothing moisturisers, itch oils and even nail varnish. Everyone deserves to feel pampered from time to time and those affected by cancer are no different.

For Julia, the heart-shaped pillow was a game-changer following her mastectomy. For Nish and Brad, who were both diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML), candles, bath oils and skin care stood out as products that helped them through treatment.

In the video, Bradley talks about how cancer can rob you of your decision making and control. He continues to describe how moments of reflection and self-care provided him with a feeling of having more control. “Cancer takes a lot of your agency away. It takes a lot of your decision making… but I can decide what to put on my skin, what goes in my hair and what goes in my bath and that can be really empowering.” said Bradley.

Dr Anisha Patel, who was diagnosed with stage 3 bowel cancer in 2018, has appeared on the Lorraine show to discuss the impacts of cancer and hair loss. She talks about how massaging oils on her scars was a way of breaking down barriers and accepting what she was going through.

The video ends with each member of the group describing what Cancer Care products best helped them through their treatment. The full video can be watched here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5YqbMTxARM

Julie Byard, Cancer Research UK’s director of trading, said: “We understand how important and difficult it is to find the right cancer care product to use. Cancer treatment can cause side effects and physical changes that can be incredibly hard to cope with, including dry and sensitive skin, body discomfort or dysmorphia, and general tiredness. We’re incredibly grateful to be able to work with people like Julia, Brad, Nish, Ben and Anisha to highlight those everyday issues and share the products that were designed to address then.

“Going through cancer treatment is difficult enough and we hope that with our range of cancer care products, we can make it just that little bit more comfortable, helping you or your loved ones through recovery. With every order you can help us fund more life-saving cancer research.”

All profits from the range go towards Cancer Research UK’s life-saving research to beat cancer.