Team ready to welcome new patients

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
A team of nurses and therapists want to tell the world about their new Lymphoedema Clinic which is dedicated to treating people with cancer.

The new clinic had a low-key opening this summer, but now the team are up to speed and ready to see more patients.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The service is funded by Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board with the aim to support people across the region who have been diagnosed with cancer related Lymphoedema. The clinic also marks the first-time the Hummingbird Centre has offered a nurse-led service on-site, in Launton, near Bicester.

Lymphoedema is a build-up of lymph fluid that causes swelling in the body’s tissues. This occurs if the lymph nodes and lymph vessels that carry the lymph fluid away are not working properly. It can affect any part of the body.

Lymphoedema Clinical Team Gemma Crane and Zoe DraperLymphoedema Clinical Team Gemma Crane and Zoe Draper
Lymphoedema Clinical Team Gemma Crane and Zoe Draper

There is no cure for lymphoedema, but with the right treatment the symptoms can be improved and well-managed. The new clinic offers advice and education, treatments and support patients to self-manage their condition.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Zoe Draper, who heads up the Hummingbird Centre’s Lymphoedema Clinic, is a highly experienced nurse with almost three decades working in the NHS. She said anyone who wants to access the service needs to be medically referred by their GP or clinician via the referral form on the Hummingbird Centre’s website.

She said: “It has taken a number of months to set up the service and fine tune everything. We’ve seen dozens of patients already and now we are now keen to spread the word because we want to help as many people as possible.

“The message from us is, if anyone out there who has been diagnosed with cancer related Lymphoedema, who has seen a specialist or is on a waiting list, please get in touch. We know people can be on a waiting list for at least six months or longer, with our service we currently have the capacity to see new referrals.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad
Gill WindleGill Windle
Gill Windle

“We know during that with time the condition could get worse and Lymphoedema has a huge impact on people’s health and well-being as a whole. We are ready and waiting to help”

Hummingbird Centre guest Gilly Windle had surgery after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022 and used the Lymphoedema Clinic. She said: “I emailed the centre and arranged to go and meet up with them - what a fabulous friendly place.

“You’re welcomed with a drink and cake, and then I talked through my cancer journey. I was able to access complementary therapies, counselling and all the other activities held at the centre. I was referred to the Lymphoedema Clinic and the nurses were brilliant. I love this place and meet some amazing people!”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

For further information call 01869 244244 or view https://thehummingbirdcentre.org.uk/

About The HummingbirdThe Hummingbird Centre opened its doors in 2014 after a promise Hummingbird founder Mechelle Harris made to her late father Raymond Hurcombe to create something good out of their loss as a family.

So far, The Hummingbird Centre has supported thousands of people and has become very much part of the community. It relies 100 per cent on donations and volunteers to enable it to operate and every penny raised goes back into the centre.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Hummingbird Centre is open from Tuesday to Friday, from 10am to 4pm, supporting people with cancer and their families, across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire, their message is - if people can get to the centre they will be supported.