A SOMERSET woman joined royalty for an emotional virtual event held to celebrate Teenage Cancer Trust s 30th birthday this month. Yeovil-based Tania Shepheard, 48, was the surprise guest at the event, and she gave a moving speech in front of the charity s honorary patrons, Their Royal Highnesses Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, and their mother Sarah, Duchess of York. Tania was one of the first people supported by the charity after being diagnosed with a rare bone cancer in 1990, at the age of 17. She began her treatment on an adult ward at University College London Hospital surrounded by much older patients, leaving her feeling isolated and alone, before being told about a new Teenage Cancer Trust unit opening at Middlesex Hospital.
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More than 40 years ago, skin patches were introduced as an effective way of delivering drugs into the body while avoiding the problems of tablets, which have to be absorbed in the gut first meaning the dose can be reduced in strength by the time it reaches its destination.
A patch can also be useful because it avoids the gastrointestinal tract, helping anyone with stomach-related problems, where absorption can be an issue.
The patch delivers small amounts of the medication or treatment directly into the skin, where it acts locally or is absorbed into the bloodstream.
While this approach is already used to help smokers quit (nicotine patches) and women through the menopause (HRT patches), it is now available for a wide variety of conditions.