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Our office and Careline opening hours for Christmas & New Year 2019
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Living With Kidney Cancer Days 2020

Check the dates for our free Living With Kidney Cancer days for 2020.
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  • living with kidney cancer days 2019 2020

    Living With Kidney Cancer Days 2020

    11 Dec 2019

     Following the our successful Living with Kidney Cancer days 2019, we are looking forward to 2020

    We are hosting more Living With Kidney Cancer days around the UK in 202. These days are designed to be relaxed, informal and offer you the opportunity to become more informed through presentations from health professionals on a variety of topics relevant to your condition. These will include surgery options, oncological treatments, dealing with side-effects as well as the opportunity to meet with, and share your experiences with, other patients and their loved ones.

    Once confirmed and available you can view the agenda for a specific day, click the link below for the day you wish to attend. A PDF of the agenda (when available) will open when you click the corresponding link below your selected venue. You can then view and close or download the agenda to keep.

    All Living With Kidney Cancer Days are free to attend, lunch and refreshments are provided and reasonable travel expenses may be available. Please contact us for more information before committing to any travel plans. If you have any special dietary requirements (vegetarian, vegan, any allergies etc.) please let us know at the time of booking your ticket.

    Once the location has been confirmed you will be able to book your place by clicking on the ‘BOOK TICKETS FOR…’ date you would like to attend and a link will open. ALL DAYS ARE FREE TO ATTEND.

    What attendees have said about our Living with Kidney Cancer days:

    AM, Plymouth 2019; “Very informative day”

    RT, Plymouth 2019; “The day was good to access information from medical professionals and other patients.”

    JT, London 2018; “They gave me information that the hospital didn’t”

    Anonymous, Birmingham 2018; “The most informative point of the process I have had, far more than the NHS.”

    Living with Kidney Cancer days for 2020:

    Leeds – 7th February 2020 (Green Friday)                                                BOOK YOUR FREE TICKET
    Hilton Leeds City, Neville Street, Leeds, LS14 BX                                                       Agenda Coming Soon

    Cambridge – TBC

    London – TBC

    Manchester – TBC

    Scotland – location TBC

    Northern Ireland – location TBC

    Nottingham – TBC

    Wales – location TBC

    PAST Living with Kidney Cancer days

    2019

    Glasgow – 20th November – Hilton Grosvenor, 1-9 Grosvenor Terrace, Glasgow                                                                              

    Liverpool – 15th November – Marriott Hotel, One Queen Square, Liverpool, L1 1RH                                                                            

    Swansea – Friday 18th October – The Dragon Hotel, 39 The Kingsway, Swansea, SA1 5LS

    Birmingham – Thursday 19th September  – Novotel, 70 Broad Street, Birmingham

    Ashford (Kent) –  Thursday 20th June – The Holiday Inn, Canterbury Road, Ashford, Kent, TN24 8QQ

    Plymouth – Thursday, February 7th – The Crowne Plaza Hotel, Armada Way, Plymouth, PL1 2HJ

    • Click for agenda                          COMMENTS FROM ATTENDEES:
    • “Very informative day”
      A M, Plymouth 2019;
    • “The day was good to access information from medical professionals and other patients.”
      R T, Plymouth 2019;

    Newcastle-Upon-Tyne – Wednesday 1st May – Copthorne Hotel, The Close, Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 3RT

    • Click for agenda                     COMMENTS FROM ATTENDEES:
    • “Reassured that my doubts and fears were well addressed during the day by both the medical staff and patients.”
      RS, Newcastle
    • “(the) day was wonderful, I didn’t feel alone when here”
      Anonymous, Newcastle
    • “A very informative day, and it was good to meet other people who have had the same condition.”
      C, Leeds

    2018

    London: 7th June 11:45am – 15:00pm – Keats House, Keats Grove, Hampstead, London, NW3 2RR

    • Click for London Agenda                                COMMENTS FROM LONDON ATTENDEES:
      “As always, come away feeling more informed, positive and not alone in this journey.”
      Rose Killick, London 2018
    • “They gave me information that the hospital didn’t!”
      John Taylor, London 2018

    Exeter: 11th July 9:45am – 15:30-2pm Buckerall Lodge –Topsham Road, Exeter EX2 4SQ

    Click for Exeter Agenda                                      COMMENTS FROM EXETER ATTENDEES:

    • “Very comprehensive informative presentations”
      Ian Pring, Exeter 2018
    • “An excellent, informative day which would help all renal cancer patients (and professionals)”
      Stephen Driscoll, Exeter 2018

    Aberdeen:  30th August 9.45am- 15.30pm DoubleTree by Hilton, Aberdeen City Centre AB24 5EF

    Click for Aberdeen Agenda (Subject to change)

    Birmingham: 13th September 9:45am -15:00pm Novotel Birmingham Centre hotel, 70 Broad Street, Birmingham

    Click for Birmingham Agenda (Subject to change)    COMMENTS FROM BIRMINGHAM ATTENDEES:

    • “The information day has helped me realise that I am not alone and that there are people positively dealing with the same issues as me.”
      Nathan Kennedy, Brighton 2018
    • “The most informative point of the process I have had far more than the NHS.”
      Anonymous, Brighton 2018

    Brighton:  17th October 9:45 – 3:00 The American Express Community Stadium Village Way, Brighton BN1 9BL

    Click for Brighton Agenda (Subject to change)          COMMENTS FROM BRIGHTON ATTENDEES:

    • “Kidney Cancer UK is such an amazing charity and today has been so beneficial due to the information and presentations given.”
      Peter Wynn, Brighton 2018
    • ‘Great help gave me better understanding of kidney cancer.’
      John Mence, Brighton 2018

    Stirling:  7th November 9.45am- 15.30pm Colessio Hotel Stirling FK8 1DX

    Click for Stirling Agenda 

    Manchester: 22nd November , 9:45am  – 15:00pm    The Lowry, Pier 8, Salford Quays, M50 3AZ

    Click for Manchester Agenda                                COMMENTS FROM MANCHESTER ATTENDEES:

    • “Very helpful and illuminating day.”
      Jeffrey Wynn Davies, Manchester 2018
    • “A very informative day, and it is good to meet and talk to other people who also have this illness.”
      Carol Ives, Manchester 2018
    • “Bringing people together in similar situations helps widen support and understanding.”
      Ross Mallett, Manchester 2018

     

    *All details are correct at time of publication and all agendas are subject to change without notice.

     

     

    The following companies have supported the 2019 events with an unrestricted educational grant:

  • Plastic container with urine

    Non-invasive test that can detect kidney cancer

    28 Nov 2019

    Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has poor survival prognosis because it is asymptomatic at an early, more curative stage. Recently, urine perilipin-2 (PLIN-2) was demonstrated to be a sensitive and specific biomarker for the noninvasive, early detection of RCC and an indispensable indicator to distinguish cancer from a benign renal mass.

    However, current Western blot or ELISA PLIN-2 assays are complicated, expensive, time-consuming or insensitive, making them unsuitable for routine analysis in clinical settings. Here we developed a plasmonic biosensor based on the high refractive index sensitivity of gold nanorattles for the rapid detection of PLIN-2 in patient urine.

    biopalsmic test for kidney cancerThe paper-based plasmonic assay is highly sensitive and has a dynamic range of 50 pg/ml to 5 μg/ml PLIN-2. The assay is not compromised by variations in urine pH or high concentrations of interfering proteins such as albumin and hemoglobin, making it an excellent candidate for routine clinical applications. The urine PLIN-2 assay readily distinguished patients with pathologically proven clear cell carcinomas of various size, stage and grade (55.9 [39.5, 75.8] ng/ml, median [1st and 3rd quartile]) from age-matched controls (0.3 [0.3, 0.5] ng/ml), patients with bladder cancer (0.5 [0.4, 0.6] ng/ml) and patients with diabetic nephropathy (0.6 [0.4, 0.7] ng/ml). Urine PLIN-2 concentrations were roughly proportional to tumor size (Pearson coefficient 0.59).

    Thus, this cost-effective and label-free method represents a novel approach to conduct a non-invasive population screen or rapid differential diagnosis of imaged renal masses, significantly facilitating the early detection and diagnosis of RCC.

    read the full article and detail on Kidney International Click HERE

  • folic acid

    Folic acid reduces mucositis in mRCC

    19 Nov 2019

    With the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) and mTOR-inhibitors a decade ago, many metastatic RCC patients have received their treatment as tablets on a daily basis and life-long. Since the treatment is continuous, tolerability is crucial. Adverse events may require dose reduction, discontinuation, or shift of treatment, leading to a situation in which available drugs are depleted in a short time. In this single-center study, we report the effect of folic acid on mucositis in patients with mRCC treated with continuous therapy.

    folic acidThe primary aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of folic acid on mucositis. A secondary aim was to characterize patient outcome with the current standard of care in patients with mRCC. The study cohort comprised data of 77 mRCC patients, who experienced CTCAE Grade ≥2 mucositis (nasal, oral, pharyngeal, anal, or genital) from systemic therapy, and were treated with folic acid in order to reduce the mucosal toxicity.

    Patients reported an effect of folic acid within days to a few weeks. Patients reached full effect of the folic acid supplementation in 31 days (median). Daily folic acid significantly reduced mucositis, mean CTCAE grade 0.88 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.74-1.03) versus 2.38 (95% CI, 2.26-2.54; P < .0001).

    Patient outcomes were not deteriorated with the use of folic acid. Median PFS for all patients was 14 months (95% CI, 1-76 months). Median OS for all patients was 31 months (95% CI, 1-114 months), which is equal to or even better than expected for the studied patient cohort.

    The present study represents, to our knowledge, the first documentation of specific therapy to reduce mucositis in mRCC patients receiving continuous therapy. To date, only supportive care to alleviate mucosal irritation has been reported, such as saltwater or sodium bicarbonate oral rinses, sucking ice, use of a soft toothbrush, steroids, and smoking cessation. Moreover, avoidance of hot, sour, salty, acidic, hard, and crunchy food, as well as avoidance of alcohol and agents that contain hydrogen peroxide are encouraged. However, these restrictions are linked with poor daily quality of life for many patients and their families.

    *Please take advice from your mediacal team before acting on any information in this article. 

    To read the full article on UroToday CLICK HERE

  • steve wilson feat image

    From Patient to Marathon Man

    19 Nov 2019

    Well where do I start; at the beginning I suppose would be a good point.

    steve wilsonSo, in May 2018, I went to the doctors as I’d found a lump, which he didn’t seem to bothered about but, to be on the safe side, he decided to send me for an ultrasound. I had it on 17th June 2019, and was told to phone up the next day for the results, I guess that should have set alarm bells ringing. It was Wednesday when I finally managed to telephoned my Doctor, to be told I had a large mass on my kidney and an appointment was made for the next day for me to see the urologist at the local hospital.

    My first question was; “how do I tell my wife?.” It took me until 9:00pm that night to tell her which resulted in neither of us getting much sleep.

    The next day was a bit of a blur until the appointment with the urologist at 3:00pm. We were told that the mass was almost certain to be cancerous and was between 7/8cm. The good news was that it looked like it was contained within the kidney but, I needed an urgent scan. I had the scan on the 29th June (which was actually the day we should have gone on holiday!) and was back for the results the following week. The scan showed an 8cm tumour and the treatment was a full nephrectomy, which was booked for Thursday 9th August.

    The operation date came and to be honest, there’s not a great deal I remember about the day, though I’m sure it was a lot harder for my wife.

    I’ve got to admit after I was moved from Intensive Care, the aftercare I received was totally shocking and I was so glad when I finally went home on the Sunday afternoon. I saw the urologist for my results and was basically told they had got it all out and to go off and enjoy my life. My wife asked for the histology report and that really wasn’t the case as it was a T3a (had just started to invade the perirenal fat) so I would be getting 6 monthly scans for the first 2 years and then yearly after that. I won’t bore you with the details of the scans, but needless to say the NHS have let me down and I am now under the excellent care of the Spires Little Aston hospital and have recently had my 2nd scan and at this moment in time, I am all clear. My wife is on the Kidney Cancer UK Facebook page, but at the moment that’s not my thing as we all have our own different ways of coping with things.

    So how and why did I enter the ballot for the charity place allocated to Kidney Cancer UK for the London Marathon in 2020. Honestly, I don’t like running and the only running I’ve done is to support my wife. My daughter entered the ballot and after an evening which contained large amounts of alcohol, I said I would also enter, especially as my wife said I didn’t stand any chance of getting the place! A few days later I entered and gave it no more thought. You can imagine the shock when I was told the place was mine. Straight away hotel rooms were booked, and I’ll have a large crowd of supporters cheering me on my way on the 26th April 2020.

    For me it isn’t about the running, as I know a lot of people enter the ballot for charity places just to run London. For me it’s all about raising awareness of the charity and also kidney cancer as its very personal to me.

    I’ve just returned from a 2-week holiday so now the training really does start. I’ve joined a local running club (my wife’s over the moon as she’s a member and has been bugging me for ages to join) and am looking forward to training with them.

    I’m not a man of many words or emotions but this is undoubtedly going to be my biggest challenge ever and I will be giving it my all…and more. Everyone asks me “what time I want run it in” but I don’t have a target in mind, I just want to get round and put Kidney Cancer UK on the map and make everyone proud, especially as cases of kidney cancer seem to be on the up so more awareness is needed.

  • Team Tribs

    Team Trilbs & The #TeamKCUK Runner

    12 Nov 2019

    ‘Where to start?

    I don’t have, but I am someone like many, living with kidney cancer. I first came across it in 2014 when my brother in law was diagnosed with kidney cancer and if I’m honest, I didn’t look into it in any depth.

    In 2016 my mum fell ill, suffering numerous water infections which culminated with her also being diagnosis with kidney cancer and having her kidney removed. I then thought; “why don’t we hear about this, disease?”

    After discussing her cancer, and that of my brother in law’s, I realised how little we knew of kidney cancer. I work in a local shop/ Post Office and was shocked how many people I knew or interacted with who had been affected by kidney cancer when I started talking about it.

    I decided to ask a group of friends, who have become known as ‘Team Trilbs’ (named after my mum), if they would help me with a tabletop sale to raise money. We never expected the result we got.

    People coming and just having a cuppa to chat. Two special young ladies came to that event, still close to the death of their father. They were so open about it they were a huge inspiration to me. They now message every time they know there’s an event due to come and help.
    This was the start of my Ambassador story, although without ‘Team Trilbs’ I wouldn’t have been able to spread awareness of kidney cancer as I have.

    We did Kidney Cancer UK’s ‘Walk for A. Cure’, not realising that Adrian Cure, who the walk was started for by his friends and widow, was actually from our village Wellesbourne in Warwickshire! And, with the support of his family we managed it to complete our walk for A. Cure!
    I discovered the best way to fundraise is play to your strengths. In my case it’s cakes, cakes and more cakes. Events such as Christmas and Easter fayres and my bad habit of talking to the extreme about my passion.

    Mark, my husband’s strength is running. He joined the #TeamKCUK Facebook group and now every run- from 10ks, OCR mud runs and half marathons- is a lesson in Kidney Cancer Awareness. He always runs in his #TeamKCUK top and I answer questions about the illness and chat whilst waiting for him. Everyone now knows him as the #TeamKCUK runner. If you want to sponsor his running go to his JustGiving page CLICK HERE

    A young man called Bertie (he’s just 7 years old) whose mum is a member of ‘Team Trilbs’, wanted to join Mark in a Wolf Run to help raise awareness, which he did!! He did great and tells everyone to check their pee for blood spots. He even did a show and tell at his primary school after gaining his running medal. What a little hero!

    If you’re looking to raise money or awareness for kidney cancer, and it really needs people to shout about it, just think what you’re good at and go for it; I did and to date I have raised £2400!

    Sadly, mum passed away on September 9th, 2019 but we will still stand against kidney cancer and fight for the awareness it desperately needs.’

    Margaret Brindle 

     

    Kidney Cancer UK would like to thank Margaret and Mark along with their supporters who make up Team Trilby who continue to help us raise awareness and funds.

  • tenovus

    Kidney Cancer UK In Wales

    12 Nov 2019

    October was an exciting time for Kidney Cancer UK in South Wales.

    Susanna Smith KCUK

    On the evening of Thursday 17th of October we were delighted as 20 nurse from around Cardiff came together with our Kidney Cancer UK Health Professional, Susanna, for our first Nurse Education event. We started by having a little something to eat which gave us the opportunity for some networking followed by Susanna giving an update of where we are now in kidney cancer.

    Susanna, a nurse in our Health Professional team met with patients, nurses and Maggie centre staff to discuss the formation of a new Cardiff support group. It was a really productive meeting and we decided a date to launch our Cardiff support group; January 23rd, 2020 14:30 – 16:00 at Maggie’s Centre, Cardiff.

    Then on Friday 17th, Susanna travelled across to Swansea for our first ‘Living with Kidney Cancer Day’ in the city.

    The day was amazing and showcased the great professional and charity support available to patients in Wales.

    Susanna opened the day talking about Kidney Cancer UK. We then heard from Sarah Hughes who is the Centre Head for Maggie’s Sarah Huges Maggies Swansea, she told us how they could provide local support and what a safe haven Maggie’s centres are. She explained how we are expected to be strong when given a cancer diagnosis, but actually the most important thing is to be kind to yourself, find people that can support you and do the things you enjoy.

    Carl Ackland, Urology Cancer Clinical Nurse Specialist told us a little bit about their service and how they support patients. He explained how nurses are key workers who support patients and can sign post them to other support services.

    Over lunch we enjoyed a free shoulder massage from Sarah Clark and the great staff at The Old Mill, helping us to remember we need to Carl Ackland Urology CNSlook after ourselves. Their centres across South Wales offer complementary therapy, events and courses.

    We then listened to updates on the surgical front from Urology surgeon, Mr Fenn and discovered how surgery has changed over the years. We were also delighted to have esteemed Medical Oncologist, Professor Wagstaff continue the afternoon by updating us on the advancements in available medicines for kidney cancer.

    Last but not least, Ruth Morris from Tenovus came to tell us about what their charity does and their interesting research into how singing improves health. She said; “Over time, singing for one hour a week puts your immune system in a better position to receive treatment for cancer”. Belwo you can see our video of the choir singing ‘Always On My Mind’ at the day.

    No sooner had she said that, she then got us up a few warmup exercises and involved in a little singing. Then, wow, she introduced us to part of the Swansea Tenovus choir, but only 50 of them! We sang along with them, lost for a few minutes in making our own kind of music. It was a great way to end our day, on a high note!

    From Susanna’s trip to South Wales, we have two new support groups starting; one in Cardiff on Thursday 23rd January 14:30-16:00, and the other in Swansea launching early February. Also, so as people in North Wales don’t feel left out, a support group will be starting at the North Wales cancer treatment centre in Glan Clwyd on the 6th January. full details to follow.

    Kidney Cancer UK really wants to help people in Wales to feel supported, so please feel free to come along and get involved with our support groups and events. We are here to listen, inform and support patients, their family and carers.

     

    FOR THE LASTEST DATES AND NEWS ON OUR

    LIVING WITH KIDNEY CANCER DAYS FOR 2019- 2020 CLICK HERE

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