Cancer in Young People

1. Cancer in Young People Looking at how cancer affects young people and what the feel while going through treatment. Jean2192.wordpress.com

2. Inspiration • “When a child is diagnosed with cancer it can seem like normal life stops and a different journey begins.”– CLIC Sargent. • My own experience with cancer has inspired me to get the message out about cancer in teenagers. Facts everyday 6 young people in the UK are told they have cancer is scary. • Cancer is a growing concern in the UK and all over the world. I conducted a poll (see slide 11) to see how many people have been affected by cancer in young people, whether they know someone who’s had it or had it themselves when they were young.

3. Radio Station & Show • Our radio station is BBC Radio 1 and the show is The Surgery with Aled (formally known as the Sunday Surgery) • BBC Radio 1 has been broadcasting to the nation since 1967 and have been growing in popularity ever since. It has been established as the place to listen to mainstream and chart music. It also broadcasts specialist music shows after 7pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock or interviews. • The Surgery began in 1999 with Sara Cox as presenter and then in 2008 Aled took over. It is broadcast in FM and Digital format. “The Best New Music And Entertainment”

4. Radio Station & Show The SurgeryThe show first began in 1999 and was aired on BBC Radio 1 from 9pm – 10pm. Since then it has 6 presenters and finally the 7th – Aled Jones. Listeners are given advice to problems such as “love, sex, life and other important stuff”. There are also listeners calling in with their own problems and advice. Every so often Aled has a specialist subject on it. For instance on the 26th February, Aled talked to Gareth Gates about stammering. Although it was a 5-10 minute slot about it, it was still a specialist part of the show. The problems are mostly focused on adolescence problems or “young peoples” issues. Aled also lets listeners tweet their problems/advice into him as he knows they are technology literate. As well as Aled, The Surgery has a host of medical and professional doctors including Mel Sayer, and Stuart Flanagan and psychotherapist Dr. Aaron Balick. Common problems include; bullying, gambling, self-harm, teenage pregnancy/contraception/abortion, exam stress and sexually transmitted diseases.

5. Target Audience Who is BBC Radio 1 aimed at? Age Range: 15-29 year olds, however the average audience age is 33 year olds. The audience want new music, popular chart music and the UK top 10. They are technology literate and are advanced in the use of social networks like Facebook and Twitter. They are up to date with all the newest things in music, fashion and media and like popular, fresh products.

6. Angle As a group we have decided to pick the topic health and we are going to concentrate on young people, our age range will focus on the BBC Radio 1’s target age of 15 – 29 year olds. Why?Health is always an important topic to raise to young people. The Surgery on Sunday’s with Aled focusses on educating the audience and answering any questions they might have about sex, love, life and other important stuff. We chose The Surgery because the people we are targeting are the people who listen to BBC Radio 1 and The Surgery. We would hope our packages educate the audience and answer some of their questions, just like what The Surgery aims to do.

7. Angle The angle I want to take with my 6-8 minute package is the emotional side of a cancer patient. Everyone knows the harsh treatments patients have to go through but what about what happens before, during and after. How do they feel? Are they scared? Do they feel normal? Are they feeling sick? I have chosen to concentrate on young people because being a young person is hard enough. You try to be normal and fit in at school and college, you try to get all your school work in on time, you try make friends and go to all the cool parties. But cancer patients have to put all that stuff in the background while they battle a life threatening disease. Many cancer patients feel well enough to still attend school early on, but may have to stop going as their energy levels decrease and their immune system fails. When they get over cancer, then what happens. I want to know how they felt going back to school without hair? If they felt left out at school by anyone? Were they scared about returning to normal life? I hope my three interviews will reflect the emotional side of cancer.

8. Why it will work for radio. Cancer is a very sensitive subject and holds a lot of emotional memories for people. I think it would work on radio because music can be very influential to how we feel while listening to it. Certain chords and notes can “tug on the listeners heart strings” and skilled musicians can pin point these melodies and make the listener feel what they want them to feel. I want the music in the package to reflect the emotions I want to convey in my package, I want them to really hear and feel the emotions brought forward by my interviewees. I also want the listener to imagine this cancer patient in their head, I want them to paint their own picture and through radio we can add the emotion. For things to really hit someone they don’t need to be conveyed through pictures or videos or music. Simply a voice can send a deep, powerful emotion through and I want my package to do that. The emotions in the voices are key to my package and I am researching interviewees thoroughly to get the correct people for my package.

9. Introduction My initial ideas were scattered and I had many ideas about many things ranging from Aung San Suu Kyi’s home imprisonment to the impact Milan, London and Paris fashion week has on the high street trends. When we decided on health I decided to do something close to my heart and something I had a lot of knowledge in – cancer. Specifically Young People with Cancer. Soon after I decided on an angle – the emotional state of the cancer patients. When I typed in cancer in young people, this came uphttp://www.teenagecancertrust.org It has been a constant source of information and research for my package. It has also thrown many possible interviewees my way.

10. What is my package about? • My package will look at the emotions a cancer patient goes through. How it affects their feelings towards family, friends, growing up, school work, etc. I want my package to show how hard it is for a young person with cancer. • They not only have to battle a life-threatening disease but they also have to deal with growing up, fitting in and schoolwork. Young people with cancer have it tough, they will try keeping up with all the things but the treatment and low energy levels they have will challenge them everyday. • Chemotherapy isn’t the only treatment, there is radiation, bone marrow transplants, surgery, tablets, etc. I want people to know about this, in a simple way they can take it in easily and understand. • I want to make sure listeners understand that cancer isn’t a death sentence, there is life after cancer. I also want to tell them that young people get the most intensive cancer treatment there is because their bodies are in peak condition and can take the sometimes intensive and tough treatment.

11. Poll Results Here are the results from my poll which was posted on my wordpress account – jean2192.wordpress.com As we can see from the poll a huge 77.77% have had experience of someone with cancer. 22.22% have known more than 5 or more people with cancer. I wanted to do cancer because it is a huge disease that affects a lot of people. My team are doing it on Health and we are basing it on the Sunday Surgery which is listened by young people (see slide 4 for Target Audience)

12. Research • The Teenage Cancer Trust allowed me to read and research many different types of cancers from people aged 15 – 21 years of age, perfect for my target audience. As well as allowing me expand the knowledge of cancers, their stories give a real insight into how they felt while in hospital. They use words like “isolated, worried, total shock”. It gave me possible ideas for interviews, and I have already contacted one of the people on the site who went through cancer to interview him about his time after cancer.

13. Research • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9VJoQoxqGo&feature=player_embedded#! • The video showed current/past patients aged 15 – 29 years old and their experiences of hospital. • The CLIC Sargent website was very helpful to my research. It focuses on children and young people. CLIC means Cancer and Leukemia in Childhood. On their website they have a special section for young people which includes tabs like; what is cancer?, top sickness tips, fertility issues, body issue, social life, etc. This helped my research greatly as I could see how your social life and body is affected and could write in my research what emotions I hope to get from my interviewees. It also provided me with possible interviewees.

14. Research • I looked at the contact page and found a woman in Edinburgh who I have contacted and hopefully will be interviewing soon. • The page also has Helpful Info for Patients. It includes tabs like; The tasks of recovery, getting back to normal, regaining trust in your body – managing the fears, getting back into the “ordinary” world, etc. • The articles are written by Dr. Peter Harvey and tells us that people think cancer is like any other disease, once you have finished treatment, you are cured and you are better. However this is not the case, the emotional and physical steps to becoming better will just be beginning. • The Cancer Counselling Trust, although now closed, provided me with many points of contact to psychologists and therapists. Many of which were family or child therapists, ideal for interviewing.

15. Research • The Cancer Research UK website helped me greatly in my research as well. They have a special tab entitled: Coping with Cancer. In here is a tab about coping emotionally with cancer and is packed full of information. • They say there is not right or wrong way to feel about cancer because it affects different people different ways. • They said that not all emotions will be negative when you find out you have cancer: “When I was told I had cancer after my operation, I was relieved. I had been under the hospital for 18 months without being diagnosed. Knowing was better than not knowing.” • It also tells us about how you might feel during and after treatment. • Anything up to 58 out of every 100 people with cancer (58%) will get depressed. • But with the right treatment for depression, 8 out of 10 people (80%) will feel better • Pretending that you are fine all the time uses a lot of energy and will make you feel very tired.

16. Research • I have taken a lot of research from my own time in Yorkhill Children’s Hospital. I was diagnosed in August 2005 with a T-Cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma (David Millward’s diagnosis). I was told I was the third person in Britain to have it. My first thought, and question, was: “Am I going to die!?”My doctor assured me I would be fine but would have to start treatment right away. • They found out I had cancer, because I was taken in with a “sore heart”. I was taken into surgery and had a large needle inserted into my chest. X-Rays and CT Scans showed that I had fluid in the sac around my heart. They couldn’t remove all the fluid as this would put too hard a strain on my heart. After removing the fluid and testing it, they found cancer cells in it and realised there was a tumour, the size of a water melon, lurking in my chest. • The start of September I was sent to the Schiehallion Ward in Yorkhill. It is a ward that is dedicated to children and young people with cancer and life-threatening diseases. I started an intensive 4 month treatment plan.

17. Research • The treatment was intense. First I felt sick and very very sore. I had to have cannulas put into veins every couples of days. The cannulas were sore and the treatment I received made me feel very very ill. • Next my hair started falling out, in clumps. It was not only making me sad but I also worried about my appearance. A normal teenage girl would take hours doing her hair, whereas mine was falling out…quickly! To stop the trauma of it coming out in clumps randomly, my Mum shaved my hair, at my request. I remember sitting with my head in my hands, crying my eyes out. It was one of the worst moments. Afterwards she tied a bandana round my head. The first thing I remember, was it was cold! I never realised how my thick hair had insulated the top of my head. I went to the bathroom, took the bandana off and saw my bald head for the first time. It was so shocking I burst into tears again. My Mum helped me a lot by cutting her hair short as to support me. • I was 300 miles away from my hometown. My Dad and little sister, Kathleen came down every weekend to see me but I missed them desperately. I missed my Papa and my Uncle Liam, all my other family and friends.

18. Research • Not only did I loose my hair from my head, I lost my eye lashes, eyebrows, leg hair and even the light hair on my arms. Losing this hair wasn’t as bad but it was slightly weird to see myself with my eyelashes or eyebrows. • If I got an infection like a common cold I had to be put into isolation. This meant my Mum had to wear a plastic apron when she was in my room and I couldn’t have many visitors incase they brought in any bugs that I might catch. This made me feel isolated and totally lonely. Things in my blood like red blood cells, platelets, etc had to be at a certain level for me to receive treatment. If I had a cold, these levels would plummet and my treatment would halt, meaning I had to stay even longer in hospital. • Even after treatment, I had nightmares about some of the things that happened in hospital. I would wake up crying or just have down days. Also my energy levels would restrict me doing certain things in the day. • When I went back to school I was nervous, as my hair was still trying to grow in, and scared that I would not know anything in the classes. Luckily I had a great group of friends who supported me and made me feel normal.

19. Research • As well as worrying about going back to school I was worried about the risk of my cancer relapsing (coming back). They assured me this was a very low percentage and 5 years after treatment I would be OK. • But my emotions did not settle. Things like scar tissue near my heart hurting me made me scared it could come back (even with the very low percentage of it returning). Also my fertility could be affected because the chemotherapy kills off all rapidly growing cells so my fertility could be affected. However doctors assured me I should be fine and only minorly affected. • Sometimes when I look back on the treatment and my time in hospital I do feel sad and scared but then I think towards my future and how lucky I am to be alive and healthy again.

20. Research • I have gathered facts and figures to support my view that cancer is a deadly disease and does affect a lot of young people. • From Teenage Cancer Trust – Every day, six young people in the UK are told they have cancer. • From CLIC Sargent – 8 out of 10 children now survive cancer. • From Teenager Cancer Trust - Cancer is the number one cause of non-accidental death in young adults in the UK. • From Teenager Cancer Trust - Incidence rates are now higher in 13 to 24 year-olds than in children, yet survival rates for this age group have not improved as much. • From Teenager Cancer Trust - Young people get some of the most aggressive cancers. But because only 0.6% of all cancers occur in young people, they are often misdiagnosed initially. • From Cancer.gov – In 2008 69,200 adolescents and young people, aged 15 – 39, were diagnosed with cancer. • From Teaching Expertise.com – One in three people in the UK are diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives.

21. Music • I’ve had a lot of ideas for the music. I need to keep in mind its for BBC radio 1. • Some ideas I’ve had is: • Destiny’s Child – Survivor – A very well known song from the group, and BBC Radio 1 listeners will recognise it, although it isn’t popular anymore. • I was also thinking of the song Lean On Me by Glee. Originally it was sung by Bill Withers in 1972. However using the Glee version, the audience of BBC Radio 1 will know what it is. If we played the Bill Withers one, the listeners wouldnot know who it was. Another Glee song I thought of was I’ll Stand By You. Both these songs have powerfullyrics, the choruses especially convince me to use thesongs.

22. Interviews I want to follow a journey of going from being diagnosed to getting treatment, and into remission. My interviews will reflect this journey. • 1st Interview – I want my first interview to be with someone who has just been diagnosed or if I can’t get that, someone who has recently started treatment. I want to know what their initial thoughts and emotions. I want to know how they felt when the doctor told them: “You have cancer.” How they dealt with it and what they thought it was going to be like, and the reality of it. • 2nd Interview – The second person I would like to interview is a cancer patient, someone who is going through cancer at the moment. I want to really hear the emotion in their voice. I want to know what treatment is like and how it makes them feel (i.e. sick, sad, scared). If they are still trying to study for school and if they are able to see friends.

23. Interviews • 3rd Interview – The third person I want to interview is someone in remission (the state of absence of disease activity in patients). I want to know how they feel now. If they are going back to school, are they worried about their lack of hair or any scars they may have due to treatment. Are they scared that people will laugh at them or make fun of them? Ultimately how they are feeling about going back to school and returning to life outside the hospital and with no treatment. • 4th Interview [back-up] – To break up the interviews I thought I could get a doctor to tell me some facts and figures. Her/His voice will also be a contrast to all the young people’s voices and act as a “break”. We can use her to break up all the interviewees. Also she can act as a “back-up” if I cant get my first three interviews. • 5th Interview [back-up] – I also thought about having a cancer counseling psychologist who perhaps works with children and young people about their emotions while going through cancer. They will also be a contrast to the first three interviewee’s voices and act as a back-up.

24. Story Arc My second interview will be witha person going through treatmentand how they are coping withnot only the harsh treatmentbut with keeping up with friendsand schoolwork. How they arefeeling. I want my introduction toinclude some facts and figures.But I also want to say that canceris not a death sentence. My first interview will be with aperson who has just beendiagnosed and their feelingson their upcoming treatment.How they think they will copewith everything. Throughout the package I wouldlike to have a doctor telling usabout some facts and figures. The voice of the doctor will giveme accurate facts and figuresthe listener can know is right. My third and final interview willbe with a person who has just finished treatment and how they are feeling after all the treatment. For the final I want to reiteratethe fact that being diagnosed withcancer is not a death sentenceand there is life after cancer.

25. Costings £125 for a studio/a day £250 for 1500 words for an actor Travel – Bus Fairs Engineer may or may not be included in the cost, need to check!

26. Style of Package • I want to really get the emotions in my interviewees voices across. I am going to make it informative. However I want my presenter to be upbeat. I want to get the message across that cancer is not a death sentence, that 8 out of 10 children now survive and that life after cancer can return to normal. • If I keep it packed with information I think it will help the listener really understand what the patients go through each and every day.

27. How I Will Keep The Listener Interested. • I will keep the listener interested by keeping the package informative and making sure the listener understands fully everything included in the package. • It will be presenter led, with a female presenter. Her voice will be soft and calm, making the listener feel comfortable and welcome. Although it is a serious topic, I want the listener to feel like they can feel comfortable talking about such a sensitive subject, I don’t want to overwhelm the listener. • The language will be informal, keeping all the information needed in simple, easy to understand terms.

28. Shows that Influenced Me • One show that definitely influenced me to do a package on health is The Surgery on BBC Radio 1. I heard Gareth Gates, a famous celebrity, talking about his stammering problem. It showed that although a serious problem for him he was able to inform people about it and how it made him feel while he was growing up in school and society.http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00pj5jkThis was on Sunday, from 9pm – 10pm. • I started listening to this show 2 years ago and it really made me understand that any illness or disease can be talked about and explained an easy to understand and informative way.

29. What About It Impressed Me • Interview Style – Aled not only interviewed Gareth Gate’s but Ed Sheeran as well. He interviewed well known people with this problem of stammering. The public can relate to these celebrities. I liked how Aled let the interviewee give lots of the information and he only talked when he asked a question or had an enquiry about the subject they talked about. • It included lots of information but it made me wonder what other celebrities might have this stammer and types of treatment to try and help it. Gareth gates gave us a couple of examples but it made me want to see if there was any new emerging treatments and how many people actually have a stammer. • The mixture of live and recorded was balanced well. Ed Sheeran was via the phone but Gareth Gates was actually in the studio. It’s like he took time out of his busy schedule to come and talk to us about his problem.

30. How it Will Fit with The Magazine • As we have seen before, The Surgery does have specialist spots. I feel that my package about cancer will fit very well. I am addressing the emotional problems that accompany the physical pressure and strains it puts on a patient’s body. I have identified that cancer is a huge issue, not only in young people, but in all ages. I am concentrating on young people, because my target audience will be able to relate to the interviewees as they will be similar ages. • Maria will be looking at the effects of alcohol on student’s health, a huge issue when young people decide to move away from home and have complete control over their lives. Barry is looking at the effects of smoking and the positive/negative sides of giving up. It is good to include something about smoking because every year 200,000 children and young people start smoking. As we know smoking is always related to cancer, so Barry’s package links to mine. Lewis will be doing a package about drugs, legal and illegal – the effect it has on young people’s bodies as well as the dangers of them. Maria and Lewis’s link because it drug taking is rapidly becoming a growing problem. It is thought that children as young as 15 years old are starting to take heroin. Steph will be doing the stress of moving from school to university. I think we have a good range of interviews. From life we have smoking and cancer, from addictions we have alcohol and drugs and what can be classed as “other important stuff” is the stress of moving from school to university.

31. Adverts That Inspired Me • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMwt28P_xSQ • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUQo3m3tGB0 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhYmGx9q7v4&feature=relmfu • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FruQGPMM750&feature=BFa&list=PL771A6E2FA3D592BD&lf=plpp_video