27 year old supported through grief, make sense of loss and feel less alone

Jenny Oldham, aged 27, was supported by the Patient and Family support team at Arthur Rank Hospice Charity after the death of her Mum in 2025. Jenny kindly shared her experience:

“My mum lived with Sarcoma Cancer for 17 years. In 2022, we were given the devastating news that her illness had become terminal, and we were told she may have only months, or at best a year to live. Despite this, my mum showed incredible strength and determination – going on to have over three more years of treatment to help keep the tumours at bay.

Mum wrote this when she was unwell:

“Being diagnosed with Sarcoma Cancer at the age of 40 was a horrific shock and life changing. But having Jenny, Tom and Sam (aged at the time  11, 10 and 6) gave me every reason to fight this and live and I feel very lucky that I was able to continue being ‘mum’ for as long as I have. Seeing them flourish into the beautiful adults they are (both inside and out), all individual in their personalities but united in giving me all the joy and laughter in my life.”

Sadly, the tumour on her liver continued to grow, and eventually we were told that there were no further treatment options available. At this point, my mum was referred to the Living Well Service at Arthur Rank Hospice. I was able to take her to sessions there, which became a really important and supportive part of her journey. The Hospice offered her things such as Complementary Therapy and wellbeing support, which helped my mum feel cared for, relaxed and supported, during what was such a scary and uncertain time.

From September 2025, my mum’s health began to decline quite rapidly. As a family, we provided 12 days of palliative care at home with support from community nurses, which was both incredibly difficult and deeply meaningful. On 6 October, she was admitted to the Inpatient Unit at Arthur Rank Hospice, and she passed away peacefully the following day, on 7 October 2025, aged 56.

The care my mum received at Arthur Rank Hospice was truly exceptional. The team showed such compassion, dignity and kindness, not only to my mum but to all of us as a family. They made an incredibly difficult time feel supported and calm and provided a level of care that we could never have managed on our own. We will always be so grateful for everything they did.

Support 

After my mum passed away, I self-referred to the Patient and Family Support Service at the Charity. I was contacted very quickly by Maggie, who was so kind and reassuring, and she booked me in with a therapist called Hayley.

From my initial assessment call, I knew Hayley was going to be a huge support. I began face-to-face sessions in January 2026, attending every other week at Arthur Rank Hospice in Shelford Bottom, Cambridge. Initially, I felt very reluctant to return to the Hospice, as it was the place where my mum had passed away. However, over time, this began to change. With Hayley’s support, Arthur Rank Hospice became somewhere I no longer associated only with loss, but also with care, support and closeness to my mum. It became a space where I felt safe to talk, reflect and process everything I had been through.

Hayley created an environment where I felt completely at ease. She listened without judgement, showed genuine compassion and helped me to understand my grief in a way I hadn’t been able to before. She reassured me that my thoughts and feelings were normal, which brought me a great deal of comfort during such a difficult time.

The Patient and Family Support Service has had a lasting impact on me. It has helped me to navigate my grief, begin to make sense of my loss and feel less alone in the process. The support I received has been invaluable and I will carry it with me moving forward.

As a family, we feel incredibly lucky to have received support from Arthur Rank Hospice Charity. Everyone we encountered was truly amazing, and we will always be grateful for the care, kindness and compassion shown to us.”

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Our ‘Outstanding’ services are provided free of charge to patients and their families. Our aim being to provide the highest quality care, helping people to make every moment count. You can find out more about how we are funded here: arhc.org.uk/how-we-are-funded.