Guest Blog | Beth Pittuck, Healthwatch Essex | Living Beyond Cancer: Understanding Life After Treatment

25 November 2025 — jessica-bailey

We spoke with Beth Pittuck, Research Officer at Healthwatch Essex, about her research project Living Beyond Cancer. She shared people’s experiences of finishing cancer treatment and the long-term effects of having had cancer. Beth hopes her research will raise awareness of these lasting impacts and highlight the vital role that local services play in supporting individuals after their hospital-based treatment. If you’re interested in getting involved in Beth’s project, her email is included in the article.

“Living Beyond Cancer: Understanding Life After Treatment

Cancer affects nearly everyone – whether you’ve had cancer yourself, or you know of a relative, friend or colleague living with or beyond cancer, it’s likely touched your life in some way. This statement fuels the passion I have for my current research project, ‘Living Beyond Cancer’.

In this blog, I will introduce my project and share some early insights from people who have generously shared their experiences with me.

Background

The number of individuals who are living beyond cancer continues to grow, with around half of patients now living for more than 10-years after diagnosis (Macmillan, 2014). Yet, as Macmillan Cancer Support (2013) has highlighted, ‘surviving cancer is not the same as living well after cancer’.

Many people experience long-term effects from their cancer and/or its treatment and are navigating new struggles. For example, fear of cancer recurrence, long-term physical effects such as fatigue, struggles with identity, and difficulties with well-being.

Despite this, there remains a gap in the support available after hospital-based treatment ends (Bourque and Loiselle, 2022). Individuals describe feeling lost following the end of their treatment and are unsure of what they can do to support themselves.

This project therefore aims to understand:

· The lasting impact that an individual’s cancer diagnosis and/or treatment has on their life in the long-term.

· How individuals navigate these ongoing changes.

· What support individuals have received since their final hospital-based treatment and what more should be provided.

Ultimately, I hope this research will raise awareness of the long-term impacts of cancer and/or its treatment and highlight the pivotal role that local services play in supporting individuals following their hospital-based treatment.

Collecting stories

So far, five individuals have taken part in this project. They have shared their experience through face-to-face interviews, and three participants have taken part in a walking interview. These walks have taken us to many beautiful places across Essex, enabling participants to reflect and share their experiences while immersed in nature.

What have I found so far?

People’s experiences have been nothing short of emotional, inspiring and insightful. They have shared the struggles they’ve faced since finishing their final hospital-based treatment, their fear of recurrence, the loss of a medical safety net and the common reflection of ‘What next?’

“What I can remember the day I was told that I was in remission… I think in my head I thought they would make some massive deal or something, but it wasn’t really that way. It was just, OK, well, you’re done now, off you pop. And I had expected to just feel incredibly happy and relieved and right, lets go out and have a party. And it just wasn’t the case”.

“I think you get this image in your head of people ringing bells in hospitals. I never got a bell…mine was a telephone call a day in November walking back from a train station”.

Individuals have described this feeling of ‘anti-climax’ once being told they were in remission. They reflected on how close friends and family were slowly moving on but they themselves were left feeling lost and confused. Many had unanswered questions and frequently cited the lack of support they were provided following their final hospital-based treatment.

“No one hands you a guidebook for what to do… nobody gave me a list of these are the different support services you can access now. You know, this is how to build yourself back up.”

Individuals described how their support ‘fell off a cliff’. Participants explained how intense their period of treatment was, with numerous visits to the hospital. However, they then reflected on how this comfort blanket came to an immediate stop following the end of their treatment.

“You know you get diagnosed and you get put straight into this almost bubble of hospital treatment and handing over your control to other people. Be here at this time or this day for treatment … and then you just come out the other end and you’re just kind of told, right, go live your life.”

Whilst participants praised the support and care they received during treatment, this sudden disappearance of support often impacted their wellbeing and ability to move forward. One individual reflected on what they hoped could be implemented to support individuals post treatment:

“If it was the dream, I would have a holistic package available. You would have the opportunity to either spend time with or get support with all aspect of life as needed. Whether that is people who look at all the things that survivors have questions about. What should I be eating now? Are these pains and niggles normal or not? … and have that person you can ask.”

These are just a few of the many reflections that individuals have shared about their experiences living beyond cancer. Other themes have included:

· The value of peer support and local support groups.

· Difficulties navigating long-term side effects and knowing who to ask for advice.

· Understanding what support is available for returning to work.

Connecting with local services:

As part of this project’s development, I visited a number of services and support groups including Helen Rollason, The Macmillan Support Centre at Southend Hospital and The Moving Forward Course by Breast Cancer Now.

Reflecting on my visits, I have written a series of blogs highlighting what these services offer and the value that they have in supporting individuals both living with and beyond cancer. You can read these on the Healthwatch Essex website.

I have also recorded a walking podcast with the wonderful Kirstie Blanche which can be found here.

What’s next?

The next phase of this research will bring together individuals who have taken part in the project, and staff who run services and facilitate support groups. We will co-develop recommendations based on the research findings and explore how they can be implemented within local services.

If you would like to find out more about the research, or get in involved, please contact me at: Bethany.pittuck@healthwatchessex.org.uk

A final thank you!

As a final note for this blog, I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to share their experiences with me. Whether walking through nature or sitting face-to-face, your openness and honesty are invaluable, I hope together we can use your stories to help drive meaningful change for people living beyond cancer.”

You can find further support for life beyond cancer – including local support groups and specific post-treatment organisations – by searching Cancer Care Map’s homepage using your postcode.