The ManVan commenced service delivery on 1st April 2014 and is the United Kingdom’s first dedicated mobile support service for men affected by prostate, testicular, and penile cancer. It is delivered in partnership with Prostate Cancer UK and Movember and fully funded by the Movember Foundation. It brings nursing care, counselling for individuals and couples, group support and welfare rights advice, directly to men living with prostate, testicular and penile cancer in communities across Wales. The ManVan has travelled extensively across Wales during its first year, visiting 94 different locations, across all seven Local Health Board areas.
The first half of the year began with a Roadshow where we welcomed thousands of visitors on board, including men and women worried by all sorts of cancer symptoms; their family and friends; health and social care professionals and politicians. The variety of venues the ManVan has visited has included hospitals, supermarkets, social clubs, caravan fairs and rugby grounds to help raise awareness of the ManVan service and identify potential clients. As expected the greatest proportion of visitors are male, particularly older men.
In the second half of the year, we focussed on our target audience – men diagnosed with prostate, testicular, or penile cancer and their families. Using a targeted approach to urology clinics across NHS Wales, as well as community-based activity encouraging men from ethnic minorities to visit, we have now taken on 161 clients, many of whom have received more than one ManVan service, and attended on more than one occasion. Most of our clients have prostate cancer, are over the age of 55 years, and are married. Analysis of the early data around the clinical and psychosocial benefits of the services offered on the ManVan is positive and the annualised value of the benefits obtained for ManVan clients equates to more than £300,000 in this first year. There were 3,319 visitors to the ManVan in total during the first year.
