Secondary breast cancer nursing toolkit
The updated toolkit includes many useful resources, and case studies on nurses in current practice.
Welcome to your secondary breast cancer toolkit
This has been developed in response to the members of our Secondary Breast Cancer Nursing Group, who often contact us for guidance and support around developing and improving the nursing service they offer to their patients.
Many nurses tell us that they have gained much from sharing good practice ideas and models with others specifically working with this patient group. Practical tools can also help individuals and teams when setting up and developing services and are useful to share.
The updated toolkit contains different sections covering a range of issues - from the case for change, developing your personal knowledge, skills and ideas to make the change, to improving the care of those with secondary breast cancer.
As well as a number of resources, it also includes case studies from nurses in current practice, so you can see what others have achieved.
The case for change
Find out why we're campaigning to improve care for people with secondary (metastatic) breast cancer.
Developing your service
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Excellence in practice
Find out what the standards of care for people living with secondary breast cancer are, and how you can articulate them.Find out more -
Making the change
Find out how to demonstrate a need for change, and how to put it into practice.Find out more -
Core competencies
Find out about opportunities to develop your skills and knowledge.Find out more
Guidelines
International consensus guidelines for advanced breast cancer (ABC 1)
2nd international consensus guidelines for advanced breast cancer (ABC 2)
NICE clinical guidelines for advanced breast cancer 2014
NICE guidelines for advanced breast cancer: diagnosis and treatment
UK Chemotherapy Board guidance on medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw
NICE Metastatic spinal cord compression overview
Acute Oncology Initial Management Guidelines
ESMO Interactive Guidelines for Advanced Breast Cancer
ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines
3rd ESMO International Consensus Guidelines for Advanced Breast Cancer (ABC 3)
4th ESO–ESMO International Consensus Guidelines for Advanced Breast Cancer (ABC 4)
NICE clinical guidelines for advanced breast cancer 2017
NICE clinical guidelines for managing advanced breast cancer 2019
5th International consensus guidelines for advanced breast cancer (ABC 5)
Secondary, Not Second Rate reports
Current best practice
Part 1: Diagnosis
Part 2: Who's counting?
Manifesto for change
Part 3: Support and impact
Part 4: Nursing care
The Case for Change summary report
Our resources
Holistic needs assessment checklist
Standards of care for secondary breast cancer
Current policies
Menopausal symptoms checklist
Cancer alliance service pledge
Signs and symptoms of possible disease progression
Ongoing patient involvement
Setting up patient focus groups
Patient survey template
Facebook Live - Pain control
Facebook Live - Palliative care
Facebook Live - Hair care during and after treatment
Facebook Live - Importance of information
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External resources
- BJN HER2-targeted therapies in breast cancer
- The Christie Service Vision - creating a structured support pathway for SBC patients
- Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale
- Cancer Coping Questionnaire
- RCN Framework: A Competency Framework for Nurses Providing Care to People with Breast Cancer
- Framework for Band 7 CNS Development
- LCA metastatic breast cancer service specification
- Global Status of Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer 2005 - 2015 Decade Report: full report
- Global Status of Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer 2005 - 2015 Decade Report: summary
- RM Partners: Tips for Managing Symptoms of Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neuropathy
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Nursing resources
- Account of practice-related visit template
- Editable CNS data collection spreadsheet template
- Serious Diagnosis Information Communication template
- Editable Exam letter
- Support Stratification Guide
- Business case tips
- Introduction to service editable template
- Introduction to service - nursing support
- Editable treatment and progression summary
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Talking to children
- Support for telling children - Fruitfly Collective
- Preparing for loss - book list from Jigsaw South East
- Facebook live - Talking with children about secondary breast cancer
- Family-Centred Cancer Care: Conversations
- PIP's Kit for supporting children (5-10 years old) who have a parent with incurable cancer
- The Little C Club Flash Cards
- ‘Making Impossible Conversations Possible’ Talking to children about serious illness and death. Univ of Oxford Facebook Live
- Useful animations to share with children
- The Ruth Strauss Foundation - supporting families facing the loss of a parent
- Marie Curie - 10 tips to help parents and carers with a life-limiting illness have conversations with their children
- Support for telling children - Talking, Telling, and Sharing framework
- How do I talk to my child? - guidance from Jigsaw South East
- Resources for families
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Useful links
- ABC Global Alliance
- ABC Consensus Conference
- YCBN Facebook Page for women under 45
- Global Trials
- Building Resilience in Breast Cancer Centre (BRiC)
- Working with Cancer
- mytomorrows helping people access possible treatment options
- Be Part of Research - National Institute for Health Research
- Find a Clinical Trial - Cancer Research UK
- NICE website
- Apollo Specialist Nursing Resource
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MDT outcome forms
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Intimacy and relationships
- Intimacy and sexuality for cancer patients and their partners
- My Viv (sexual-wellbeing brand)
- Facebook Live - Sex and Intimacy
- Maximising Sexual Wellbeing - Signposting sheet - Breast Cancer
- EASSi Framework to guide discussions (Engagement, Assessment, Support & Signposting)
- Breast Cancer Now - Your body, intimacy and sex
- Macmillan Cancer Support - Cancer and your sex life
- Further resources
- Pleasure & Intimacy: A guide for people living with cancer by the Fruitfly Collective
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Until Things Change - The Unsurvivors Campaign
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Partners
Case studies
Real examples of how hospitals across the UK have improved their services.
The toolkit has everything you need in one place to ensure you're going in the right direction. It's really useful when teaching others too.
Join the Secondary Breast Cancer Nursing Group
Our Secondary Breast Cancer Nursing Group has been set up in response to requests from nurses working with patients affected by metastatic breast cancer.
We'd love your feedback
We envision this toolkit to constantly evolve. Please tell us what you think. And let us know your ideas for resources or content that would be useful to add to it.
Do tell us if you adapt or change your service so we can share your experience with others. By working together, we can ensure everyone affected by secondary breast cancer receives the highest standards of specialist nursing care.