"A friend's review"

I am writing this review on behalf of my best friend whom I supported yesterday during a visit to the one stop approach breast clinic at Oldham Hospital.

Firstly, I want to say that unfortunately this was one of the worst days of our lives, as my friend in her early 30's was diagnosed with breast cancer, which obviously left us devastated and shocked.

I agreed to write this review before we got this news. However, I felt it was still important to do so afterwards, to help others understand what to expect, encourage them to go, and offer feedback to the service that was provided.

I wanted to say how impressed we were with the service, the fact that my friend was able to have her consultation, mammogram, scan, biopsy and results all on the same day meant the was no anxious waiting any more days (although there was a lot of waiting having gone in at 9am and not receiving the results till 5pm, however this was understandable given how obviously busy they were and we were fully informed of this beforehand) and appreciated.

The staff particularly the nurses and consultant were fantastic and explained what would happen next at each stage and answered questions that we had. They were also understanding, friendly and supportive whilst maintaining their professionalism. They treated my friend with dignity and respect.

I was very grateful that I was able to to be present and stay with my friend at all times (apart from the mammogram obviously). They fully respected this and included me in discussions, to support my friend, which she found reassuring and supported.

Whilst we got the worst news possible we are so grateful it has hopefully caught early, the swift diagnosis and have confidence in the team and service that will be treating and supporting my friend. Thank you. .