Being accessible and inclusive to all young people with a cancer diagnosis in the UK and ensuring every young person experiences belonging and improved mental wellbeing is at the heart of the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust's new Ambitions, launched by Dame Ellen MacArthur in London.
The Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust is a national charity that takes young people aged 8-24 on sailing and outdoor adventures to inspire them to believe in a brighter future living through and beyond cancer.
Every day around 12 children, teenagers, and young adults under 24 are diagnosed with cancer. Happily, survival rates are increasing. But, of the 3,000 new young people the Trust could work with every year, it can currently support just 9% of those to go sailing for the first time - less than 1 in 10..
Launched at the British Medical Association, the Trust's new Ambitions - 'Bigger Impact, Brighter Futures - Our Ambitions 2023-2025' - detail how the charity plans to reach, inspire, and support more young people than ever over the next three years.
Over 20 years we have evolved as a charity, and we will keep evolving as we strive to be a truly diverse and inclusive youth organisation that is relevant in the world we live in today.
"What we achieve in the next three years will lay the foundations for the next 20, but we will need help and support to get there."
This year, the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust celebrates its 20th anniversary. The charity has grown from taking five young people from Great Ormond Street Hospital sailing in 2003, to supporting almost 2,900 young people after treatment from across the UK. This year the charity hopes to welcome 750 young people sailing or on outdoor adventures.
Frank Fletcher, Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust CEO, added: "Today, 12 young people have heard they have cancer. Thanks to modern medicine, the majority will finish treatment and be told they can get back to 'normal'.
"But many of them won't know what 'normal' is anymore, and their future can feel like a daunting, overwhelming, prospect. That's where we come in.
"We have to be ready for those 12 young people. And the 12 who are diagnosed tomorrow. And the 12 every day after that. That is what is what drives these Ambitions."
For more information at the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, including to download 'Bigger Impact, Brighter Futures - Our Ambitions 2023-2025' visit www.ellenmacarthurcancertrust.org
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