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No images? Click here December 2025 | Newsletter No.12 | #ncukintheloop
Looking Back on 2025: A Year of Progress and HopeAs 2025 comes to a close, Neuroendocrine Cancer UK reflects on a year defined by progress, collaboration, and the strength of our community. Under new leadership, the charity has continued to place patient voices at the heart of its work while expanding support, raising awareness, and driving meaningful research. Key achievements include supporting nearly 3,000 patients and families, celebrating our community through the Hero Awards, strengthening GP education to improve early diagnosis, increasing investment in research, and advancing vital data and policy work. Throughout the year, the courage and determination of those affected by neuroendocrine cancer have continued to guide and inspire everything we do. PATIENT STORYThe Patient Voice Panel with The James Lind Alliance, by Elaine Neuroendocrine Cancer Site: Insulinoma In the summer, I was invited to take part in the new James Lind Alliance (JLA) ‘patient voice’ panel, along with around 10 other Neuroendocrine Cancer UK patients. I had never participated in anything like this before and was concerned that perhaps I did not have the right skills. LATEST WEBINAR NETWorking for Life – The power of peer support for those affected by neuroendocrine cancer. Neuroendocrine Cancer UK Ambassadors, Chrissie, Kath, Polly, Carolyn and Jon share their experiences of neuroendocrine cancer in this patient webinar ‘NETWorking for Life’. CATCHING UP ON WEBINARS A reminder that we regularly host educational webinars specifically designed for our patient community. If you’ve missed any sessions or would like to revisit a topic, you can catch up anytime on our YouTube channel HERE. Our thanks go out to everyone who has presented or attended. A special thanks to those who have donated when registering for a webinar, raising just over £1,500 this year. This helps us continue to provide this resource, alongside other community-focused educational activities. Managing Uncertainty: The Patient Perspective - UKINETs Conference 2025
We were proud to represent the patient voice at a recent healthcare professional conference, ensuring the experiences of those living with neuroendocrine cancer are heard and valued. "On Monday, 1st December, I was invited to UKINETS 2025 as one of their guest speakers. This year, they wanted to hear from a patient. The subject was “managing uncertainty: a patient's voice.” This was a great honour to be invited to speak on such a large stage. Speaking to a room full of people that I respect in the treatment of neuroendocrine cancer." PATIENT SUPPORT GROUPS Every week we offer a variety of support groups designed to meet the diverse needs of our community. With sessions led by caring staff or community facilitators, you’ll find a safe space to share stories, gain insights, and grow stronger together. We are delighted to be able to continue our Patient & Family Support Meetings: with over 100 people a month taking part either in person or online. All agreed and scheduled groups are listed on our Events Calendar : which is being currently populated with all agreed 2026 dates. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all venues and most importantly our group facilitators for their incredible support in enabling us to provide this vital resource - and to all attendees, for your participation and the friendship you offer each other. GLASGOW PATIENT SUPPORT GROUP On Saturday 6th December, 30 patients and family members from our Glasgow Patient Support Group enjoyed their annual Christmas outing. The group spent a festive afternoon at the pantomime at the King’s Theatre, followed by a relaxed and delicious meal together at a local restaurant – a wonderful way to round off the year. The next meeting of the Glasgow Patient Support Group will take place on Friday 10th January, at the Renfield Centre, 260 Bath Street, Glasgow, G2 4JP, from 1:30pm to 4:00pm.
NEUROENDOCRINE CANCER UK HERO AWARD WINNERS! Congratulations to our Winners! Each of our Heroes has shown extraordinary courage, compassion and dedication. Whether living with neuroendocrine cancer, supporting loved ones, or caring for patients. The incredible number of votes they each received is a true testament to the impact they’ve had on our community. A huge thank you to everyone who submitted nominations and shared such powerful, inspiring stories. And thank you to all who took the time to review our finalists and cast your vote.
AMBASSADOR SPOTLIGHT
One of the things we always ask when someone applies to be a Neuroendocrine Cancer UK Ambassador, is 'what motivates you to want to help us?' Some of you will know Chrissie, who was first diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer almost 30 years ago and has been under the care of The Royal Free London NET Centre of Excellence ever since, including having a liver transplant. This is Chrissie's story of why she does what she does for us: FEATURED FUNDRAISERS We’re incredibly grateful for our amazing and supportive community. In recent weeks, a remarkable group of runners took to the streets in support of Neuroendocrine Cancer UK — raising awareness, generating vital funds, and paying tribute to their loved ones. Thank you so much! This month, we’re celebrating four incredible fundraising efforts - from CrossFit grit to ultra-running, mountain treks, and marathon teamwork. Thank you to every single person who pushes themselves to raise awareness and support for Neuroendocrine Cancer UK. 🏋️♀️ CrossFit Vastus – Battle Cancer London Ruth and the CrossFit Vastus teams took on Battle Cancer London 2025, pushing through C2 bikes, sandbag cleans, synchro burpees and more - all in honour of their teammate Berni, who is living with neuroendocrine cancer. The team raised an amazing £1,299.97. 🏃♀️ Aurel – 300-mile Running Challenge Year Throughout 2025, Aurel completed five ultra-marathons, the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon, 20 Along the Forth, and several shorter races - totalling almost 300 miles, all in memory of her brother. 🏔️ Marcus, Charlie & Christo – The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu This family team are honouring both their beloved mother/grandmother and Marcus’s ongoing Stage 4 NET diagnosis by trekking the four-day Inca Trail in Peru - climbing to 4,200m at Dead Woman’s Pass with no showers and steep climbs throughout. They’ve already raised £2,172.50 to support patients and families living with NETs. 🏃♂️ Team Mazathon – Yorkshire Marathon 2025 Friends, family and colleagues came together to honour Mazin, a doctor and adventurer whose positivity shone throughout his illness before his passing in 2024. Team Mazathon ran the Yorkshire Marathon, raising an extraordinary £8,772.07 to support others facing neuroendocrine cancer.
A HUGE THANKS While we love to shine a spotlight on individual fundraising achievements, we want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who supports Neuroendocrine Cancer UK. Your dedication, passion, and creativity make an incredible difference. Did you know there are so many ways to get involved? Visit our fundraising page below to explore the possibilities and start planning your next adventure today! CHRISTMAS CLOSURES Please note that Neuroendocrine Cancer UK’s office will close at 2pm on Wednesday 17th December and will reopen on Monday 5th January. Our Helpline will close at 2pm on Thursday 18th December and will reopen on Tuesday 6th January. If you are concerned about a health or
medical issue, please contact your health care team directly. Wishing you a peaceful Christmas, COUNSELLING AND THERAPY ALONGSIDE RAREMINDS Did you know? We continue to provide our free-to-access counselling and therapy programmes, alongside our charity partners at Rareminds. Details of these services - including January dates for our group programmes - can be found below Feedback please Since this is a new format for our newsletter, we wanted to check in and see how we're doing. We’d appreciate it if you could take a moment to answer two quick feedback questions below. Thank you
We don’t receive NHS or government funding. We don’t have grants from the larger cancer charities. We are solely reliant on the generosity of members of our community to fund our ongoing work, to whom we are so grateful. We look forward to seeing you next month and keeping you in the loop! Neuroendocrine Cancer UK |