Episode Details
Back to EpisodesE212: Dr Caroline Leek - Fruitfly Collective and Parenting with Cancer
Description
Trigger Warning: cancer, children dealing with cancer, death, dying and mental health.
Episode 213: part of theLiving with and Beyond series (part 73).
Description: In this powerful and thought-provoking episode, Naman Julka-Anderson and Jo McNamara are joined by Caroline, founder of the multi-award-winning Fruit Fly Collective.
Caroline has a background in neuroscience research and medicine regulation policy. In 2012, she founded the multi-award-winning Fruitfly Collective, a not-for-profit organisation that focuses on empowering parents diagnosed with cancer to navigate family life and support their children.
Fruitfly Collective’s work has included research into building a service within the NHS to support cancer patients who are parents, delivering primary school cancer education programmes and family workshops, developing resources for families affected by parental cancer, and designing Parenting with Cancer coaching programmes.
In this episode, we explore the often-overlooked challenges faced by parents living with cancer, discuss how healthcare professionals can better support families throughout the cancer pathway, and highlight why honest, age-appropriate communication with children is so important. Caroline also shares the inspiration behind Fruit Fly Collective, the impact of its work, and her vision for embedding family-centred support into routine cancer care.
Whether you are a healthcare professional, researcher, educator, student, charity worker, or someone with lived experience of cancer, this episode offers valuable insights into compassionate, holistic and family-focused cancer care.
CPD Reflection Points:
- watch Caroline’s Tedx talk on Parental Love vs Parental Empowerment. Consider how parents diagnosed with cancer might engage with their children on the subject.
- Reflect on how confidently you ask patients whether they have children or caring responsibilities, and whether this is embedded in routine assessment.
- Identify one practical change you can make in your clinical role, such as asking about children, offering a parenting resource, or discussing family needs at key points in the cancer pathway.
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Credits: Music and jingle credits: Dr. Ben Potts and Adam Cooke.
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