You're not on your own
Places to turn to when you need support
Being told you have cancer, and facing treatment, is frightening. Losing your hair can feel like one worry too many. Alongside our hats and scarves, we wanted to gather the people and charities who are there to help, whether you need someone to talk to, advice about hair loss, or a bit of comfort after surgery.
Everything here is free to use unless we've said otherwise. We checked these details in July 2026, though things do change, so it's always worth a quick look at each website too.
Need Immediate Assistance?
If you'd like to talk to someone today, the telephone number below is free and answered by trained nurses
Support Services
Macmillan Cancer Support
Macmillan
is there for whatever you need, from practical help to someone to talk to, or advice about money and benefits, which can be a real worry when you're too unwell to work. The free support line is open seven days a week, and you can call, email or chat online to trained staff and nurses. There's a huge library of clear, trustworthy information about treatments and side effects, plus a friendly online community where you can talk to others who understand. If you only ring one number after a diagnosis, this is a good place to start.
Support line: 0808 808 00 00
(7 days a week, 8am–8pm)
Website: www.macmillan.org.uk
Address: 89 Albert Embankment, London, SE1 7UQ
Maggie's
Maggie's runs warm, welcoming drop-in centres, usually in the grounds of NHS hospitals. You don't need an appointment, you just walk in. Inside you'll find friendly staff who can help with the practical and emotional side of cancer, from benefits advice to a quiet cup of tea and a chat. There are support groups, wellbeing workshops and simply space to gather your thoughts. Family and friends are welcome too, and there's an online centre so you can get support from home. For many people, Maggie's turns something overwhelming into something more manageable.
Telephone: 0300 123 1801
Email: enquiries@maggies.org
Website: www.maggies.org
Registered office: The Stables, Western General Hospital, Crewe Road,
Edinburgh, EH4 2XU
Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK is best known for funding research, and it's also a wonderful source of clear, calm information for patients and families. The website covers every type of cancer, explaining diagnosis, treatments and side effects in plain language, with practical sections on coping with hair loss and finding wigs, hats and scarves. There's a free nurse helpline where you can ask questions and talk things through, plus an online forum called Cancer Chat where you can share experiences. When you want to understand what's happening without wading through jargon, this is a dependable place to look.
Nurse helpline: 0808 800 4040
(Mon–Fri 9am–5pm)
Website: www.cancerresearchuk.org
Breast Cancer Now
Breast Cancer Now is the UK's leading breast cancer charity, offering care, support and information to anyone affected. Its free helpline is staffed by specialist breast care nurses who can talk through any question or worry, whether you're newly diagnosed, in treatment, or coming out the other side. There are support services that connect you with others who've been there, along with clear written information about treatments and side effects, including hair loss. If breast cancer is your situation, this is a charity that knows it inside out and offers a safe, confidential place to talk things through.
Nurse helpline: 0808 800 6000
(Mon–Fri 9am–4pm, Sat 9am–1pm)
Email: hello@breastcancernow.org
Website: www.breastcancernow.org
Address: 6th Floor, The White Chapel Building, 10 Whitechapel
High Street, London, E1 8QS
Future Dreams
Future Dreams runs the UK's only dedicated breast cancer support centre, in London, with plenty on offer online too, so you can join in from wherever you are. It's a place for practical and emotional support at every stage, with support groups, workshops and wellbeing classes, all designed by and for people living with breast cancer. Whether you want to meet others in the same boat, learn something new, or simply feel a bit less alone, you're welcome. Family and friends can find support here as well.
Telephone: 020 4558 2950
Email: info@futuredreams.org.uk
Website: www.futuredreams.org.uk
Address: Future Dreams House, 61 Birkenhead Street, London, WC1H
8BB
Cancer Hair Care
Cancer Hair Care is a leading UK hair loss support charity, offering free, expert advice on every part of hair loss and hair care, before, during and after treatment. That includes guidance on scalp cooling to help reduce hair loss, looking after a sensitive scalp, and caring for new growth once it starts to come back. There's specialist advice for Afro-textured hair and for people in the LGBTQ+ community, plus one-to-one support, video tutorials and free downloadable resources. If you've just been told you'll lose your hair and don't know where to start, this is a gentle, knowledgeable first port of call.
Telephone: 01438 311 322
Email: info@cancerhaircare.co.uk
Website: www.cancerhaircare.co.uk
Address: Mindenhall Court, Block B, High Street, Stevenage,
Hertfordshire, SG1 3UN
Look Good Feel Better (including HeadWrappers)
Look Good Feel Better is a national cancer charity that helps you manage the visible side effects of treatment. Trained volunteers from the beauty world run free workshops, in person and online, covering skincare, make-up, and coping with changes to your skin, brows, lashes and hair. Since HeadWrappers joined the charity, there are dedicated headwear sessions too, with hands-on scarf-tying and scalp care, plus a complimentary gift bag. The workshops are relaxed and friendly, and you get to meet others going through something similar. Most
people leave with a real lift in confidence at a tough time.
Note: HeadWrappers merged with Look Good Feel Better in 2025.
Headwear workshops are now booked through the Look Good Feel Better website. HeadWrappers enquiries: headwrappers@lgfb.co.uk.
Telephone: 01372 747 500
Email: info@lgfb.co.uk
Website: www.lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk
Address: West Hill House, 32 West Hill, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 8JD
My New Hair
My New Hair supports anyone facing medical hair loss. It was set up by the celebrated hairdresser Trevor Sorbie MBE, inspired by helping a family member through cancer. At its heart is a nationwide network of hairdressers, trained to cut and style wigs so they look and feel like natural hair, and to guide you kindly through the whole process. The website has a salon finder so you can track down a trained stylist near you, plus advice about wigs, hair loss and regrowth. For many women, a good wig styling brings back a real sense of themselves.
Note: Trevor Sorbie MBE, the charity's founder, passed away in
2025. My New Hair and its trained salon network continue his work.
Website: www.mynewhair.org
Find a salon: the Salon Finder at www.mynewhair.org
Knitted Knockers UK
Knitted Knockers UK is a charity of volunteers who hand-knit and crochet soft breast prostheses for women after a mastectomy or lumpectomy, free of charge. The silicone prostheses given out by the NHS can feel heavy and hot, and can rub against healing skin. A knitted knocker is a light, breathable, 100% cotton alternative that takes the shape of a real breast and sits softly in a bra. You choose the size, colour, and whether you'd like a nipple. There's a waterproof version for swimming too. Each one is made to order and arrives with a handwritten note.
Shine Cancer Support
Shine is the UK charity for adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s living with a cancer diagnosis. Cancer at a younger age brings its own worries, from work and money to fertility, dating and feeling out of step with friends. Shine gets that. It runs local networks across the UK, along with lunches, walks, getaways, online groups and workshops on things like going back to work or managing anxiety. There are events for your family and friends too. It's a warm community of people who understand exactly what you're going through.
Telephone: 07804 479 413
Email: hi@shinecancersupport.org
Website: www.shinecancersupport.org
Trekstock
Trekstock supports young adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s living with cancer. It focuses on the things that matter when you're younger, like staying physically and mentally well, keeping connected, and coping with the long tail of treatment once the hospital appointments stop. There's a free online group programme, gentle Pilates and yoga you can do from home, and honest information on subjects other people tiptoe around, from exercise to relationships. Above all it's a way to meet others your own age who really get it, so you don't have to face things alone.
Website: www.trekstock.com
Teenage Cancer Trust
Teenage Cancer Trust is the UK charity for young people diagnosed with cancer aged 13 to 24, and their families too. It funds specialist units in NHS hospitals so young people are treated alongside others their own age, rather than with small children or much older adults, and it funds the nurses and youth workers who support them. There's clear, easy-to-understand information about every part of going through cancer when you're young, plus events that help young people regain their independence and meet others in the same position. If someone in your family is a teenager or young adult facing cancer, this is the charity built around them.
Telephone: 020 7612 0370
Email: hello@teenagecancertrust.org
Website: www.teenagecancertrust.org
Address: The Place, 175 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7AA
Penny Brohn UK
Penny Brohn UK is the cancer health and wellbeing charity. It helps you look after your whole self during and after treatment, with free support around nutrition, gentle physical activity, managing stress, and mindfulness. Courses and one-to-one sessions run from its national centre near Bristol and online, so you can join from home. The friendly helpline can talk you through what's on offer and help you find what suits you. If you want to feel a bit more in control of your health and wellbeing while you're going through it all, this is a lovely, calming place to turn.
Helpline: 0303 3000 118
Email: clientsupport@pennybrohn.org.uk
Website: www.pennybrohn.org.uk
Address: Chapel Pill Lane, Pill, Bristol, BS20 0HH
Yoga for Cancer New Forest
If you are in treatment for, or living with cancer and want to feel more at home in your changing body, this class will help you safely stretch, strengthen and relax through gentle movement and breath work. The specialist class is led by an advanced yoga teacher trained in yoga for cancer, and provides tailored guidance and modifications. No previous yoga experience is needed. All surgical incisions must be healed and a platelet count of at least 20,000 (NIH)/200(NICE) is required to participate.
Classes take place every Tuesday from 11.15-12.15pm at St Saviour's church hall in Brockenhurst and are free to join
The Brain Tumour Charity
The Brain Tumour Charity is the UK's largest dedicated brain tumour charity, and it's there for anyone affected, whatever your age. Its support and information line offers a confidential space to ask questions and talk through a diagnosis, whether it's your own or a loved one's. There are teams for children and families, young adults and adults, so you reach someone who understands your situation. The charity also offers free counselling, a money and benefits clinic, online peer support groups, and a wealth of clear resources. It supports people right across the UK and Northern Ireland.
Support line: 0808 800 0004
Email: support@thebraintumourcharity.org
Website: www.thebraintumourcharity.org
Address: Fleet 27, Rye Close, Fleet, Hampshire, GU51 2UH
Pancreatic Cancer UK
Pancreatic Cancer UK is the dedicated charity for anyone affected by pancreatic cancer. Its free support line is answered by specialist nurses who understand the disease inside out, so no question is too big or too small. You can call, email, or message on WhatsApp, whichever feels easiest. The charity offers clear information about symptoms, diagnosis and treatment, along with real stories from others who've been through it, plus free events and resources. It also campaigns hard for better research and care. If pancreatic cancer touches your family, this is a knowledgeable, compassionate place to turn.
Support line: 0808 801 0707
(free)
Email: nurse@pancreaticcancer.org.uk
Website: www.pancreaticcancer.org.uk
Address: Queen Elizabeth House, 4 St Dunstan's Hill, London,
EC3R 8AD
Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation
The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation is the only UK charity dedicated solely to lung cancer, supporting people through diagnosis, treatment and living with the disease. It offers a nurse-led helpline, support groups, an online forum, and clear information about treatments and managing symptoms day to day. Everyone's experience of lung cancer is different, so the team helps you find support that works for you and your diagnosis. The charity also works to raise awareness of the symptoms and to fund research. Warm, practical help from people who really know lung cancer.
Helpline: 0800 358 7200
Website: www.roycastle.org
Address: Cotton Exchange Building, Old Hall Street, Liverpool,
L3 9LQ
Ovacome
Ovacome is the UK-wide support charity for anyone affected by ovarian cancer, including family, friends and carers. Its support line, answered by a specialist nurse, is there for information, a listening ear, or simply reassurance, and support is offered in several languages as well as English. There are online and in-person support groups, a round-the-clock online forum, and clear booklets written and checked by experts. The whole aim is to reduce the isolation an ovarian cancer diagnosis can bring, and to connect you with others who understand. A gentle, well-informed community to lean on.
Support line: 0800 008 7054 / 07503 682 311 (Mon–Fri 10am–5pm)
Email: support@ovacome.org.uk
Website: www.ovacome.org.uk
The Irish Cancer Society
The Irish Cancer Society is the national cancer charity for the Republic of Ireland, and it's there for anyone affected. Its freephone support line is
staffed by experienced cancer nurses who offer trusted information and a listening ear, by phone, email or video call. Around the country there are Daffodil Centres based in hospitals, where nurses and trained volunteers give free face-to-face support. The Society also funds free counselling and night nursing, and offers an interpreting service if English isn't your first language. Whether you have a diagnosis, are worried about cancer, or are supporting someone you love, help is a free call away.
Support line: Freephone 1800 200 700
(Mon–Fri 9am–5pm)
Email: supportline@irishcancer.ie
Website: www.cancer.ie
Address: 43/45 Northumberland Road, Dublin, D04 VX65
Marie Keating Foundation
The Marie Keating Foundation was set up by the Keating family after they lost their mother Marie to breast cancer, and it's now one of Ireland's leading cancer charities. Its nurses offer free information and advice through an Ask the Nurse service and mobile units that travel the country. There are support groups, including one for women living with secondary breast cancer, and a Survive and Thrive programme for adjusting to life after treatment. Its Comfort Fund also offers one-off financial help to people struggling with the costs of a diagnosis. Warm, practical support at every step.
Telephone: 01 628 3726
Email: info@mariekeating.ie
Website: www.mariekeating.ie
Cancer Focus Northern Ireland
Cancer Focus Northern Ireland has supported local people for over fifty years. It offers a free nurse line for anyone with questions or worries about cancer, along with counselling, family support, and bra and swimwear fitting for women after surgery. There are support groups, a patient driving service to help you get to appointments, and prevention work out in the community. Whether you're newly diagnosed, in treatment, or supporting someone close to you, its team is there to help you and your family through every stage, right where you live.
Nurse line: 0800 783 3339
Website: www.cancerfocusni.org
Address: Montgomery House, 6th Floor, 29–33 Montgomery Street,
Belfast, BT1 4NX
