Lisa Dennis and Maymie White

Maymie, when did you and Lisa come up with the idea of The Treatment Bag?

I was having treatment in my local NHS hospital when a wonderful character appeared. He was a local apple farmer who had come in (in wellies!) for his own treatment. He cheerfully dropped a large bag of apples by each treatment station and had a joyful word of encouragement for each of us.

I was so touched by this random act of kindness and by the way it lifted everyone’s spirits that I had the idea of giving gifts to other cancer patients. Lisa has been a chemo buddy to Nel, a mutual friend, having treatment for breast cancer. That experience also affected her, so I knew she would be the right person to approach with my idea. She didn’t hesitate and so The Treatment Bag was born.

Which was the very first product you secured for your bags?

True Grace donated 200 body lotion, 200 body wash and 100 candles. The company is run locally to us by the wonderful Pip and Roger Biles who are dear friends.

Are they all donated free by the companies or do you have to pay for them?

A mixture. Many companies donate for free. Some give us a quantity at cost and donate the rest. Most give us a great deal and usually throw in something extra for nothing. People are incredibly kind.

Which products which currently go in the bag?

We have a beautiful scarf and cashmere mix hat from Franchetti Bond, a body wash from Bramley, a lip balm from The Organic Supermarket, balm from Inlight Beauty, a pillow sleep spray from Saskia Essences, mouthwash from Blue M, herbal tea from Pukka Herbs, organic chocolate from Chocolate and Love, and a beautiful mug. The products change from month to month depending on donations at the time.

Some of the products which go into a Treatment Bag ...

How do you get the bags to patients?

Anyone can order a bag through the website. In return for a donation to the charity we post all over the UK (but not yet abroad).  We ask for a donation of £50 so that we can continue our work – as the bags contain on average £130 of lovely things, everybody seems happy to pay £50 and lots of people give more. The bags are beautifully wrapped and posted out in a strong box.

We give some bags away to our local chemo centre and doctor's surgery, we donate others to cancer charities (such as Ellie’s Friends), and we run a monthly competition giveaway via social media. We’ve also had a collaboration with Healthcare at Home who give chemo and take bags into patients homes.

Which products do patients most appreciate?

People often comment that the hat and scarf are incredibly soft. But it varies. The feedback has been amazing and patients love the pillow spray, the gentle skincare and mouth care. When we first set up we were given hundreds of discount cards by Cook (delicious ready meals).  People loved these as it meant they didn’t have to think about cooking for themselves.

Anything you’d dearly like to include in the bags but haven’t been able to source?

Nothing comes to mind, we are always on the lookout for new products and companies have never turned us down when approached.

Is your service nationwide?

Yes. We’ve sent bags from the Highlands to the Channel Islands.

Presumably it’s a concept which would work equally well for other kinds of patients?

Definitely. I sent a bag to my cousin recently who was in hospital for a long time because of a different illness, but for the time being the charity is sticking with cancer patients. In the future we might expand. At the moment we don’t have the manpower.

Can people who know someone undergoing chemo ask you to send a Treatment Bag to them?

Yes, absolutely, if they go to our website and click on the 'Need one' link, they can order a bag for anyone having treatment. It's not restricted to people actually having treatment, though. We also send bags to patients living with cancer or those beyond treatment.

Who deals with all the products coming in and packs the bags?

We have an amazing team of volunteers who come in regularly to help wrap and pack. The days are great fun, we work hard, have a delicious lunch and all leave with the sense of having done some good!

... and a few more

How many bags are you sending out each month now?

About 40 a month. But every so often this number goes up. Last year we received £5,000 from a young Welsh girl (19), Grace, who was a cancer patient. She came to us in Somerset and collected 100 bags which she donated to her local chemo centre.

Which has given you more satisfaction: building up your villa business, Scott Williams, or getting Treatment Bag off the ground?

They’ve been totally different. Scott Williams started very small and now has 12 employees so that’s something I’m proud of. Treatment Bag is a different sort of satisfaction as we are bringing such joy into people’s lives when they need it the most. And that also makes me happy.

Thank you Maymie!