Saskia Wells was diagnosed with a brain tumour, aged 16. Now 18, she tells us about being one of the first patients in the UK to receive one-to-one exercise therapy support through the Active Hospitals project, funded by Public Health England and Sport England, at Sheffield Children’s Hospital.
When I was 16, I was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a brain tumour. I chose to take part in an international clinical trial – known as PNET 5 – at Sheffield and was treated with both chemotherapy and proton therapy.
The chemotherapy for this type of tumour is particularly difficult for teenagers due to the side effects which can happen. Because of this, I worked closely with physiotherapists during my treatment but felt I needed continued rehabilitation at the end of it because my muscles had lost strength and tone.
I’d received specific rehabilitation from the physio and occupational therapy team after my chemotherapy, but it was felt that having active sessions would help me reach some of my personal, everyday goals. This meant that as part of my recovery at Sheffield, I took part in the new Active Hospitals project.
At the end of my treatment, I was in a wheelchair and struggling to do day-to-day tasks. But I worked really hard and with guidance from Tom Fletcher, my exercise therapist, I’m now doing really well and have even moved on to taking part in workouts with weights.
When I was first introduced to Tom, I’d only recently started to walk short distances and stand up and maintain my body weight. We talked about some of my fears and concerns, such as being worried that I’d never be able to walk properly again and how I felt low because I wasn’t able to be my normal, outgoing self. After this initial chat, Tom and I agreed on several longterm goals for me to work towards. These included being able to independently shower, go to - and be able to dance at - a concert, and to be able to run again.
The programme really helped me in my recovery and in getting back to being me, both physically and mentally.
I must admit that, to begin with, I didn’t have much confidence that exercise therapy would help me achieve these goals and improve my quality of life, but the programme really helped me in my recovery and in getting back to being me, both physically and mentally. I think it exceeded my expectations, both for myself and for what the programme was going to be. I didn’t think I’d get to this point. I’ve got so much more independence back now, from being in a wheelchair to now is such a huge difference. I’m so much better now and attending full-time college and living life to the fullest! I can’t recommend the programme enough and think it would be great to see exercise therapists in all hospitals in future.
Tom said:
Through Active Hospitals, Sheffield Children’s is making physical activity a key part of recovery plans for children and young people, whilst also offering more resources to support staff, patients, and their families. It’s important for patients to be given the opportunity to become physically active. This is because during treatment, they generally have lower physical activity levels than their peers and being physically active in the long term may help to counterbalance some of the effects of their cancer and treatment.
From Contact magazine issue 99 - Summer 2023
