6,000 appointments annually and 20 new referrals a month at Cancer Relief

Cancer Relief currently supports almost 250 individuals, receiving just over 20 new referrals every month.

The charity revealed the statistics as chief executive Gráinne McKenna stepped down after seven years in the role, with Nic McCheyne taking over the post.

Before Ms McKenna stepped down as Cancer Relief’s CEO, she told the Chronicle she had an “enormous sense of pride” in how far the charity had come from turning a derelict building into a free, comprehensive cancer support centre.

The charity supports people from diagnosis to recovery, through end-of-life care and beyond, including bereavement support for families.

Around two thirds of current service users are patients, including those receiving curative and palliative care, while families are supported both through acute services and the bereavement support programme.

Ms McKenna pointed out that the scale of that work is significant.

In 2025, Cancer Relief delivered more than 6,000 clinical appointments, over 700 complementary therapy sessions, around 1,000 physical therapy sessions and almost 350 psychological support sessions.

“Behind each of those numbers is a person, a family and a moment of care, reassurance or practical support,” she said.

Ms McKenna has worked with Cancer Relief in Gibraltar since 2013 and has seen the charity grow over these years, from an organisation with limited resources into a professional and trusted service.

The charity works closely with the GHA to support specialist training and career development for healthcare professionals, advocated for improved cancer care provision, and played our part in helping to establish new and much-needed services.

Ms McKenna said securing Government funding for the Hospice Outreach Service in 2018 allowed the charity to take the first tentative steps towards creating Gibraltar’s first dedicated community-based hospice service.

She added that seeing how these services have grown today remains one of the proudest achievements of her career.

“The charity itself has grown beyond anything I could have imagined when I joined,” Ms McKenna said.

“From being the first member of staff, working alongside Marisa in her seconded role from the GHA, Cancer Relief is now a team of 28 employees across our clinical, administration and fundraising departments, alongside a team of amazing Service Level Agreement therapy providers. These numbers, however, only tell part of our story. They are not what matters most to me.”

Ms McKenna said one of the main challenges included facing increasing demands, rising costs and the need to protect the wellbeing of staff while continuing to provide high-quality professional care, free of charge.

The charity is now under the helm of Nic McCheyne as CEO, and Ms McKenna said the charity she has left her successor is larger, more visible, more professionally structured and more deeply embedded than it was in 2013 when she joined.

Since the relaunch of the charity, Cancer Relief has grown from an organisation with an annual income of approximately £90,000 to one that now requires annual charitable funding approaching £700,000 (excluding provision of the Government of Gibraltar HOS grant) to provide the services they deliver.

“I have had the privilege of working with Nic, our incoming CEO, for eight years in her role as the charity’s Operational Lead. Her experience, commitment and support have been central to building the strong foundations Cancer Relief has today,” Ms McKenna said.

“I have every confidence that, under her leadership, the charity will continue to evolve and make a crucial difference to our community.”

“I believe Nic should look forward to leading a charity with strong foundations, an exceptional team and enormous goodwill from the community.”

Ms McKenna added there is still much more that Cancer Relief can achieve, including continuing to develop sustainable funding, strengthening partnerships, supporting staff, responding to changing patient needs and building on projects that improve cancer and hospice care for Gibraltar.

“I have no doubt that Cancer Relief will continue to evolve, grow and make an extraordinary difference under its new leadership,” she said.

For Ms McKenna, the true measure of Cancer Relief is the thousands of people and families whose lives have been touched, supported and, in many cases, changed by what they do.

“Cancer Relief’s biggest impact is often felt in quiet moments: a patient being able to remain at home with specialist support; a family receiving guidance when they feel overwhelmed; someone finding comfort through counselling, therapies or day care; or a person approaching the end of life with dignity, compassion and expert care,” she said.

“These moments are not always visible, but they are at the heart of why the charity exists.”

She added that it has been a privilege to work alongside the team at Cancer Relief and the GHA, and that stepping down has been “undoubtedly an emotional decision”.

“It has been such a significant part of my life for the past 13 years, and I leave with an enormous sense of pride in what we have accomplished together, but also with immense gratitude for having had the privilege to be part of something that matters so deeply to our community,” she said.