If you are a Breast Cancer patient in need of help and guidance you are welcome to register and join here.

I will add some info about Reach for Recovery here, I know that when I was first diagnosed I did not know of its existance and therefore wish to make it easier for others to find them

Reach for Recovery, Johannesburg is one of the branches of Reach for Recovery, South Africa which in turn is a member of Reach to Recovery International. The groups provide a comprehensive non-medical programme created to help women with breast cancer. It is a self-help group based on the premise that former breast cancer patients, who are now physically and emotionally healthy and choose to become volunteers can relate in a unique and positive way to new patients diagnosed with breast cancer.

The goal of this programme is to provide practical and emotional support to these women so that they are able to make relevant personal decisions and to find the motivation for recovery with an optimal quality of life. The programme is approved by the medical profession and promoted by Cancer Associations worldwide.

There are no dues or charges. This is a voluntary and free service available, with her doctor's approval, to any woman who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Reach for Recovery is affliated to the Cancer Association of S Africa and all the other supportive services of the Association are available if required.

Some of the services provided are:

1. Volunteers who are trained recovered breast cancer patients visit patients in hospital either before and/or after the operation. Counseling is provided at this time and if necessary at any later stage.

2. All patients visited are supplied with a booklet and pamphlets to assist with the recovery from breast cancer as well as a soft prosthesis (temporary false breast), a pillow for underarm comfort and a bag to contain the port-a-vac for draining the wound.

3. Counseling for patients at the Breast Clinics operated at the Johannesburg Hospital and Baragawanth Hospital

4. Provision of permanent prostheses (false breasts) to patients who are indigent or without medical aids. These are supplied at minimal or no cost to the patient.

5. Regular support group meetings where topics of interest either related to breast cancer or other relevant topics are discussed.

6. Involved in “preventive” action through talks and pamphlets to encourage breast self-examination and thus early detection of breast cancer particularly during October Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Reach for Recovery receives no grants and is therefore reliant on the public for support.

Contact details:

Tel: 011 646 5628
Fax: 011 646 2914
E-mail: rforrjhb@cansa.org.za