We would like to extend our Community-Based Acupuncture Service (CBAS) to provide parity of access across the county and make the service more accessible to Cancer Patients.

But to do this and run the existing service we need to raise £23,000

CBAS started in November 2017 and is run by two medical acupuncturists, Dr Carolyn Rubens (Former President of the British Medical Acupuncture Society and GP) and Anna Joseph (Chemotherapy Sister, SCC).

The need arose out of the increasing numbers of patients experiencing side effects from their cancer treatment such as joint pains, chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, hot flushes and anxiety.

The service has been very popular and run from the centre in Brighton. In 2019 CBAS received referrals from consultants in Brighton, Worthing, Haywards Heath, Eastbourne as well as a number of GPs and CNSs in these areas. We saw 78 patients and delivered 375 acupuncture treatments. 92% of patients reported an improvement in their side effects following treatment. However, patients had to travel to Brighton to receive acupuncture.

Our proposal is to increase the service to other satellite clinics in Sussex to reduce travel and make the service more accessible and treat

more patients. In addition, we are hoping to start (where appropriate) some group sessions, which will allow even more patients to benefit from acupuncture, help build a support network for patients, as it allows them to meet other patients and also learn some self-treatment techniques.

The COVID pandemic has meant we have been unable to deliver the service but were able to re-instate treatment briefly using Macmillan Covid 19 Recover and Restore risk assessment guidelines up until the beginning of the latest lockdown.

As a result of the COVID situation, we have 100+ patients on the waiting list but have closed referrals for the time being to avoid disappointment. Once restrictions are lifted and we re-open referrals we expect the demand to be very high as there will be a backlog of patients.