For more than 30 years, Look Good Feel Better has been supporting New Zealanders who have cancer. With backing from the cosmetics industry, the charity is best known for its makeover skincare and make-up classes, and has mostly focused on helping women navigate the changes in their appearance caused by illness and medical treatments.
But now LGFB is getting a makeover itself, expanding its services to do more for the emotional wellbeing of both male and female cancer sufferers, as well as those caring for them.
Partly, this shift was powered by the pandemic, explains general manager Clare O’Higgins. While lockdowns meant that in-person workshops could no longer be held, moving sessions online presented new opportunities. It also prompted the charity to establish a cancer wellbeing tracker, and in 2023 it commissioned market research company Ipsos to conduct an online survey of more than 2000 New Zealanders.
“Coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic, we really wanted to get a sense of how the community was faring,” says O’Higgins. “We’re known for skincare and make-up, that’s where we started, but we wanted to find out how we could continue to support people.”
The latest research, shows that 34% of cancer sufferers report poor wellbeing. Women and 45- to 54-year-olds have significantly lower wellbeing and for many people it tends to decline after treatment, indicating that while physical symptoms may lessen, emotional and mental health challenges persist.
Cancer sufferers whose wellbeing improved attributed it to things like having a renewed or positive outlook on life, successful treatment and strong support systems.
Fatigue is the most common side effect of the disease and is experienced by seven in 10 cancer sufferers. Emotional impact, difficulty sleeping and hair loss are also widely reported. The research also revealed that carers are doing it tough, with 32% reporting poor wellbeing.
Meanwhile, for around a quarter of cancer sufferers, exercise is the one non-medical intervention that has the biggest impact on wellbeing.
Benchmarking how people affected by cancer are coping will help LGBF stay relevant, says O’Higgins. However, the charity intends to remain focused on non-medical support. “It’s really important that we stay in our lane.”
For instance, since exercise is rating so highly, LGBF now offers free online chair yoga and Pilates sessions. Carers are welcome to join in and people can go to as many sessions as they choose.
“Even if they’re not feeling great, they can come online, have the camera off, do as much or as little as they like,” says O’Higgins. “When people are immune-compromised, going into the community can be difficult so it’s a positive move to be able to take part at home. They can access sessions at any stage in their treatment and post-treatment, too, because they still have to go for scans and there’s a lot of anxiety associated with that.”
Mindfulness and breathing exercises are included in the suite of online sessions. There is also an online speaker series for men, because the research has identified that they tend to have smaller support networks than women.
Science-backed complementary therapies also have a role to play, with the research showing they support emotional wellbeing, particularly during the diagnosis and pre-treatment stage of illness. The most commonly used are nutrition, supplements, massage therapy, taking ginger and meditation/mindfulness practice, followed by yoga, Pilates, acupuncture and turmeric.
Cancer sufferers who use complementary therapies report a greater sense of control, better stress management and an overall improvement in quality of life. Generally, they are comfortable discussing them with their doctors and 59% of clinicians are supportive.
“Just like with the cosmetics industry, we’re brand neutral, but we’re actively looking at ways we can engage with well-researched complementary therapies that will bring a benefit and allow people to trial a number things and find what works best for them,” says O’Higgins. “Most importantly, everything has to be free.”
LGBF plans to take some of its online sessions into the community and is collaborating with other organisations such as Menzshed which brings men together to connect over shared projects. It also aims to update the cancer wellbeing tracker annually. “Everything we do needs to be patient-led,” says O’Higgins, “and this research allows us to take the temperature and see how we should continue to develop.”
