Cuisle centre helps provide much needed cancer support

“An indomitable spirit never yields. Have courage and live.”

As you enter the central foyer of the Cuisle Cancer Support centre in Portlaoise, one particularly eye-catching adornment jumps out from the lavishly-decorated walls. Enveloped by a beautifully varnished template hewn from a segment of tree trunk, two mirrors shimmer with light from the open and airy surrounds, with the above quote indelibly etched on the wooden façade.

Those words, spoken by Le Chéile founder Fiona Byrne, a group which supports the running of the Cuisle centre, are not just a fixture of that piece of masterful craftsmanship which stares into the souls of all who walk through the front door. They also hold a special place for those who give and receive treatment there.

"We support people newly-diagnosed with cancer or people going through a cancer journey at any stage, providing support alongside medical treatment. We not only support the person being diagnosed, but the family as well and the children of that family," says Stella Moran, director of services at Cuisle.

“People that attend a centre find it so relaxing coming through the doors. The hardest thing is coming through the doors the first time, but once people do they find the support that they receive from staff and volunteers great, whereas before they might never have thought they’d need it,” she adds, as we wander into the oasis of tranquillity that is the central courtyard.

Overlooked by windows on each of its 10 sides, elegantly-fabricated wooden benches and green potted plants peer down towards a stone font that stands upright and resolute in the middle. Far from a sterile clinical environment, this architectural triumph of a facility possesses an alluring character, along with a host of amenities such as group therapy rooms, counselling spaces, a sprawling meeting room and even an area set aside for expressive arts therapy.

It’s all reflective of a unique ethos designed to ease the anxieties of cancer patients as they go through, and come out of, what can often be a tortuous life experience.

“Once people have had all their medical treatment, they often come home and feel that they’re cured, but mentally and psychologically they feel that they have gone on this rollercoaster of a journey and now they’re left on their own,” says Stella.

“You have to have empathy with them, and feel for them for what they are going through, and you have to give them hope. They have gone through their medical treatment, and now we can give them hope of continuing to live with cancer, which we prepare them for,” she adds.

As we walk through the centre’s circular corridor and past the artistic depictions of serenity hanging solemnly from every wall, all of which are painted by patients, Stella explains how everyone involved in Cuisle is extremely active in fundraising for the charity, with local establishments regularly hosting fundraisers such as pub quizzes and coffee mornings.

“We are funded mainly by donations and fundraisers, so they’re very important to us in order to sustain the therapies we have in the centre,” she explains.

“Research has shown that if you give support to people, and you help them psychologically with their diagnosis, then they don’t feel that they need to go back to doctors and hospitals as much. Therefore we do save the hospitals and the Government money, because people have the support and they’re more confident with living with their cancer,” she says.

That said, fiscal considerations aren’t the only matter on the minds of Cuisle centre staff. Overall, 250 people received support from the centre last year. Although it receives regular referrals from GPs, hospital doctors and nurses throughout the county, Stella would like a more universal recognition of the services provided by Cuisle for cancer patients.

“People tell us that they’re not aware of the Cuisle centre until they’re diagnosed, and then they see the work we do when they do come here. We would love to have a bigger awareness of us so that when someone finds out they are diagnosed, they can come here straight away for support,” she says.

Ever a busy woman given the demands of her all-consuming vocation, she is keen to stress the improvement in attitudes towards cancer treatment.

“In the past… cancer was a taboo subject, so much so that people didn’t even want to admit they had it. But now with the younger generations who’ve been diagnosed, they are coming through our doors for support, and are becoming more open to talking to somebody about their diagnosis because they know it will help them. That’s great, and we love to see it.”