logo
Paralympic gold medallist opens Surrey Cancer Centre

Paralympic gold medallist opens Surrey Cancer Centre

Yahoo04-02-2025

The Royal Surrey Cancer Centre was reopened by two-time Paralympic gold medallist Erin Kennedy on Tuesday following a £6m refurbishment.
Kennedy, appointed OBE last year for rowing and breast cancer awareness, was treated at the centre after being diagnosed in May 2022, aged 29, with triple negative breast cancer.
She told staff: "You are all working together to provide an amazing service for the many thousands of people that will come through your doors at a time when their world has stood still."
Sophie Otter, chief of service for oncology, said: "This project has seen us double the clinical space available, which will ultimately enable us to save more lives as early diagnosis and treatment options continue to grow."
As well as increased clinical space, the refurbishments include a space for carrying out blood tests, a dedicated information hub and a sensitive conversation suite.
Kennedy underwent 15 rounds of chemotherapy and a double mastectomy before she was given the all-clear in March 2023.
"The new facilities have been designed around patient needs and provide a welcoming environment that is expertly equipped to support individuals and their loved ones," she said.
"The incredible care at Royal Surrey was second to none, their approach enabled me to continue competing whilst on chemotherapy and the team truly understood me as a person, not just a patient."
During the opening, Kennedy presented the centre with her framed Team GB Lycra.
"It wasn't just my rowing team that came with me on this journey but my team at the Royal Surrey who became a part of my integral, everyday, part of my team," she added.
Louise Stead, group chief executive of Ashford and St Peter's and Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trusts, said the opening was "the culmination of many years of planning and hard work in partnership with our patients".
The cancer centre, previously known as St Luke's, was opened in Guildford by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1997.
According to the centre, three million people now receive care at the hospital each year.
The NHS said one in two people will develop some form of cancer during their lifetime.
Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, on X. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.
Kennedy wins Euro gold year after cancer diagnosis
Bowel cancer vaccine trial launched
Paralympian wants better cancer care for young people
Royal Surrey Cancer Centre

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Kennedy names new members of CDC vaccine advisory panel days after removing previous advisers
Kennedy names new members of CDC vaccine advisory panel days after removing previous advisers

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Kennedy names new members of CDC vaccine advisory panel days after removing previous advisers

Just two days after retiring the entirety of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel, US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has appointed several prominent critics of the government's Covid-19 response to that committee. He announced eight new members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, on Wednesday. Kennedy had said Monday that the previous 17-member panel that makes recommendations on who should get vaccines and when was rife with conflicts of interest and that he would appoint new 'highly credentialed' experts in time for the panel's June 25 meeting, at which the members are expected to discuss guidance for Covid-19 and HPV shots, among others. In a statement Wednesday, Kennedy said the reassembled panel will demand 'definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations, but will also review data for the current vaccine schedule as well.' The eight new ACIP members include Dr. Robert Malone, a biochemist who made early innovations in the field of messenger RNA but in more recent years has been a vocal critic of mRNA technology in Covid-19 vaccines. The CDC recently narrowed its recommendations for mRNA Covid-19 shots, but some advocates in the Make America Healthy Again space have pressed Kennedy to go further and bar the vaccines entirely. Another new member is Dr. Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and epidemiologist who co-authored an October 2020 strategy on herd immunity known as the Great Barrington Declaration with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, now director of the US National Institutes of Health. Both Malone's and Kulldorff's names were circulated early in the second Trump administration as potential advisers on ACIP or other panels, according to a person familiar with the process who requested anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak with CNN. Kennedy also chose Dr. James Pagano, an emergency medicine physician he described as a 'strong advocate for evidence-based medicine' who has served on hospital committees and medical executive boards. Dr. Retsef Levi, an MIT professor who has published studies on mRNA vaccines and cardiovascular events, is also joining the panel. Levi is a professor of operations management. Several of the new members have served in federal health agencies previously, including Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a former acting chief of the NIH's section on nutritional neurosciences. Dr. Cody Meissner, a Dartmouth professor of pediatrics who also signed the Great Barrington Declaration, has previously served on ACIP and on the US Food and Drug Administration's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. Dr. Vicky Pebsworth, the Pacific region director of the National Association of Catholic Nurses, also served on the FDA committee and on a national panel reviewing the 2009 H1N1 swine flu vaccine. Dr. Michael Ross, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University, has previously served on the CDC's Advisory Committee for the Prevention of Breast and Cervical Cancer. Kennedy also nodded in his statement to Ross' 'continued service on biotech and healthcare boards.' The private equity company Havencrest, in which Ross is an operating partner, describes him on its site as a 'serial CEO' who has served on the boards of several biotechnology companies.

HHS reinstates more than 450 CDC employees fired in April reorganization, including childhood lead poisoning team
HHS reinstates more than 450 CDC employees fired in April reorganization, including childhood lead poisoning team

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

HHS reinstates more than 450 CDC employees fired in April reorganization, including childhood lead poisoning team

The US Department of Health and Human Services is reinstating more than 450 employees at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who were fired as part of a massive reorganization in April, including workers focused on HIV and childhood lead exposure. More than 200 employees had their firings rescinded at the CDC's National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD and Tuberculosis Prevention, along with 158 at the National Center for Environmental Health, an HHS spokesperson confirmed. Another 71 were brought back in the Office of the Director and two dozen more at the Global Health Center. The reinstatements represent almost 20% of the 2,400 CDC employees who HHS said it was dismissing in a mass Reduction in Force, or RIF, in April. The cuts also affected employees across the US Food and Drug Administration, the US National Institutes of Health and the US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, but an HHS spokesperson said Wednesday's reinstatements applied only to employees at the CDC. 'Under Secretary Kennedy's leadership, the nation's critical public health functions remain intact and effective,' HHS Director of Communications Andrew Nixon said in a statement. 'The Trump Administration is committed to protecting essential services – whether it's supporting coal miners and firefighters through NIOSH, safeguarding public health through lead prevention, or researching and tracking the most prevalent communicable diseases. 'HHS is streamlining operations without compromising mission-critical work,' he continued. 'Enhancing the health and well-being of all Americans remains our top priority.' Fox News earlier reported the reinstatements. The cuts had wiped out the CDC's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention and Surveillance Branch as it was in the midst of helping the city of Milwaukee address a lead exposure crisis in its public schools. The firings meant the CDC had to deny a request from the city for specialists to help. US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was repeatedly pressed by reporters and lawmakers over the situation, and he said he didn't intend to eliminate the branch. On Wednesday, the entire lead team was rehired, along with its parent group, the Division of Environmental Health Science and Practice, according to its newly reinstated director, Dr. Erik Svendsen. 'You previously received a notice regarding the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) upcoming reduction in force (RIF),' read an email to reinstated employees, obtained by CNN, who had been put on administrative leave since the notice of their dismissal. 'That notice is hereby revoked. You will not be affected by the upcoming RIF.'

RFK Jr. names 8 new members of vax advisory panel
RFK Jr. names 8 new members of vax advisory panel

Axios

timean hour ago

  • Axios

RFK Jr. names 8 new members of vax advisory panel

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy on Tuesday named eight new members to serve on an influential federal vaccine advisory panel after firing all 17 of the committee's members. Why it matters: While Kennedy posted on X that the new appointees are committed to evidence-based medicine, several have a history of expressing anti-vaccine sentiment or voicing concerns about COVID-19 or mRNA vaccines. Some were also signers of the Great Barrington Declaration, a petition authored by a group of scientists including current NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya that advocated for allowing COVID to spread among young, healthy people to reach herd immunity faster. The approach drew fierce criticism from many experts. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices serves as an outside expert source to make recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control. Its recommendations can influence whether insurers cover vaccines. The new members are: Martin Kulldorf, a biostatistician who previously served on the Vaccine Safety Subgroup of ACIP and who was a co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration. He was fired from Harvard University for refusing COVID vaccination. He later claimed it was because he was " too pro-vaccine." Robert Malone, a physician-scientist and biochemist who made early contributions to mRNA vaccine technology. He was dubbed a "misinformation star" by the New York Times for spreading false information about COVID and mRNA shots, including claiming he was an inventor of the technology.. Cody Meissner, a professor of pediatrics at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, who has previously held advisory roles for both CDC and FDA. He is also a signer of the Great Barrington Declaration and co-wrote an editorial with FDA Commissioner Marty Makary during the COVID pandemic arguing against masking for children. Retsef Levi, a professor of operations research at MIT. Levi has been a critic of mRNA vaccines, posting on social media in 2023 that "we have to stop giving them immediately." Vicky Pebsworth, a long-time nurse with a Ph.D. in public health. She previously served on the FDA's Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee and on the National Vaccine Advisory Committee's vaccine safety working group for the H1N1 vaccine. As of 2022, Pebsworth served on the board of the National Vaccine Information Center, an anti-vaccine group. She's spoken publicly about her son experiencing long-term health issues following vaccines at 15 months old. Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist who previously worked at the NIH for many years. He primarily studies nutrition and brain health. Michael Ross, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University. James Pagano, an emergency medicine physician licensed in Florida and California. The other side: The announcement immediately stoked fears from some public health experts that the committee selections are overly skeptical of vaccines. "It's entirely possible that some of these people may be completely non-problematic," Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization at the University of Saskatchewan. However, others are "unbelievably anti-vax people. They are 100% not going to approach this in good faith."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store