This group was set up by volunteers when it became apparent that there was a need to support local women with a faulty BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, on a regular and consistent basis. It is run independently from all Healthcare Trusts.
All the women in the group have had a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene fault confirmed and are at various stages of their journeys. We have many women who have had all or part of their risk reducing surgeries, others that have chosen to have regular surveillance and newly confirmed members.
The group is run by Elizabeth Leech, Jo Considine, Suzannah Fitzgerald (Clinic Nurse Specialist) and Natalie Savage. We hold meetings at two different venues (Maidstone Hospital and Queen Elizabeth Queen Mother Hospital, Margate), to ensure that they are easily accessible to our members in both East and West Kent. This ensures that the atmosphere remains friendly, non-intimidating and not over-crowded. It also means that it is never too long to wait until the next meeting if you feel the need to speak with someone face-to-face. Our members can attend any of the meetings at either venue, as little or as often as they wish.
We are passionate about supporting local women and understand that it can feel like a whole new world, from understanding the different surgical techniques, to managing a surgically-induced early menopause. This means that we are able to support each other locally, often having experience of the same surgeons and hospitals. Between us all, we have a vast amount of information to share, to help women feel less isolated, better informed and more empowered to make the right choice for them.
To keep the group safe and secure, all that we ask is that women meet the criteria which is having a faulty BRCA1 OR BRCA2 gene confirmed, live in Kent and are over the age of 18.
Caroline Langman
This group was inspired by the late Caroline Langman who was a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Genetics, to whom we are all grateful to. She recognised the need for supporting women and raising awareness when the faulty BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes were still a fairly new discovery.
Caroline was passionate about what she did and more than generous with her time to support women. We know that she would have been very proud to see our group flourish and continue the good work she started..
