ADVANCED BREAST CANCER GROUP - West End

WHO WE ARE

The Advanced Breast Cancer Group is a unique community based service that has been supporting women diagnosed with secondary breast cancer and their partners, families and carers throughout Queensland since 1999.

Women with advanced breast cancer are the forgotten face of breast cancer. They are not ‘survivors’ who can put their cancer behind them and get on with their lives.  These are the women who have to live with the knowledge that sooner or later they will die of their disease.

These women and their partners and families fall between the gaps, and the Advanced Breast Cancer Group has developed an efficient and effective means of bridging this gap by offering psychosocial support to find ways to live meaningful lives in the face of this frightening illness.

WHAT WE DO

SUPPORT GROUP. We offer a professionally led group delivered on a weekly basis, both face to face and by telephone, from our Brisbane office. This enables local and rural women throughout Queensland to access psychosocial support, to share their experience and overcome the isolation they feel.

WORKSHOPS. Every year, we deliver two workshops in Brisbane that bring together women involved in the weekly group, their partners and family. We invite guest speakers presenting on cancer-related topics as well as facilitators leading creative expression activities.

WEBSITE - www.advancedbreastcancergroup.org.au

Our webpage is a growing and dynamic resource for women all over Australia. It has been included in the online web archive PANDORA, a digital archive dedicated to the preservation of Australian publications of national significance. It contains information and resources for women, partners and families as well as health professionals focused on improving understanding of the needs and challenges facing women with advanced breast cancer.

RESOURCES DVDs. We have produced three DVDs, available free of charge to either consumers or health professionals throughout Australia.

• “You are Not Alone – a film about living with secondary breast cancer” is the story of three of the women in the group.
• “Walking Beside Her” - a partner’s journey with secondary cancer.
• “Ask a Radiation Oncologist” - addressing some common concerns and anxieties about radiation therapy.

ONLINE FORUM - bcaus.org.au

The Aussie Breast Cancer Forum is an online meeting place for those affected by breast and gynaecological cancer and for their family, friends, carers and loved ones. Forum users can overcome the barriers created by distance and isolation by communicating with others - sharing their experience, and seeking support and information.