Since 2010 when the Pink Finss was established our mission has evolved based on the needs of the community. We have created a place that people of the Hawkesbury feel they can go, or recommend to someone, if diagnosed with cancer and our skills, experience and connections make us who we are today. We really have learnt so much about supporting others, we have built long lasting relationships in the community and we now have a very strong model for what we do.
It seemed like a natural progression for the Pink Finss to launch the Men's Chapter, and expand our service offering to also help men of the Hawkesbury who have been diagnosed with cancer. This is thanks to the Hawkesbury Living Cancer Trust and the Richmond Club Group who have committed funding to the Pink Finss to enable us to now offer the same services that we offer women of the Hawkesbury to our Hawkesbury men.
After holding focus groups with men who had gone through cancer we realised that it really doesn’t matter if you are male or female… being diagnosed with cancer is life changing and we have the experience and the ability to help, which is exactly what we want to do.
What we have learnt from our research is that men often leave it until the last minute to go to the doctor for a check up if they feel like there is something not quite right with their bodies. One of the things we want to focus on is building awareness particularly in men of the need to have regular check up's and speaking up if things don't feel right. We want men to know that if they do receive a diagnosis the Pink Finss is here to support them and their families, with whatever it is they need. We have a group of men that have been diagnosed with cancer and gone through treatment who are willing to chat about their experiences so you will not feel as alone.
For the partners and wives of men who have been diagnosed, we understand the burden and pressure of this diagnosis. As one of our wives has said previously "My husband wasn't the only one diagnosed with cancer, our whole family was diagnosed with cancer". We are here to help you as well and feel that by taking the pressure off the wives and partners we are helping the man who is diagnosed as well.