A 27-year-old cancer survivor from Edinburgh set sail to a brighter future beyond cancer with the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust.
Lisa Kerr took on a four-day sailing voyage through the vast waters off Largs last week - from June 13 to June 16 - to celebrate life and meet other young people who have been through the same cancer-battling experience.
Lisa, who was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2019, a week before turning 25, said: "A lot of the time, I find, when you're out of treatment, people stop asking or forget that you're still undergoing check-ups and you still have links with your cancer ward.
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"They think that once treatment is done, that's you, back to normal. So I've found the trip really useful, just speaking to people, hearing their stories and talking about my experience."
Founded by the record-breaking round-the-world yachtswoman in 2003, the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust hope to inspire young people to believe in a brighter future living through and beyond cancer with sailing and outdoor activities.
The Trust's work begins when the young cancer survivors end treatment and are looking to integrate into society and re-establish their place in the community.
Lisa, who was among 11 voyagers on the sailing journey, said: "I'd had chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and I finished radiotherapy in February just before Covid. So just as I was about ready to start going out again, I had to shield.
"I felt like it knocked me back a bit. I didn't know how I was meant to feel, what stage I was meant to be at energy-wise.
"Sailing with the Trust was one of the first things I'd done since coming out of shielding. It's come at the right time.
"It was so nice to be away, out and about again, and with people who understood. They knew how daunting it was just trying to go back out again."
The Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust is a national charity that uses sailing and outdoor adventure to return cancer survivors a sense of belonging, optimism and independence once they finish their treatments - however lengthy and complex.
Dame Ellen MacArthur, the Trust's founder and patron, said: "We hear it a lot that for many young people, what happens after treatment can be as difficult as, if not even more so, than the treatment itself.
"Receiving funding from People's Postcode Lottery has been a game-changer in enabling us to reach and have a positive impact on the lives of many hundreds of these young people over the past decade.
"We know the impact the Trust has on the mental wellbeing of young people living through and beyond cancer. Thanks to players of People's Postcode Lottery, more and more will get the support they need to believe in a brighter future."
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