Star Appeal 2025: Dr Satya Garikipati

Being an oncologist isn’t just my job, it’s my passion. At Weston Park, we want our patients to feel like they are family. We care for people in good times and in bad. We celebrate every success, and we share sorrow alongside families when things don’t work out as we’d hoped. The hospital is a remarkable place, and it’s the patients, staff members, and supporters like you that make it so special.

As a consultant, I see the impact that your donations make every day. In the past, your support enabled us to purchase nebulisers for our patients to use at home, for example. These alleviate the side effects of head and neck cancer treatment and make it easier for people to swallow and breathe. Many patients can’t afford to buy their own nebuliser. But charity funding meant that everyone can benefit from these important pieces of equipment.

Sometimes it’s the little things that make a difference. Our paediatric radiographer uses charity funds to purchase small gifts, which we give to young patients at the end of each treatment. You should see how they smile when they spot their goody bag!

Your support means patients can benefit from complementary therapies like reiki and acupuncture. It also powers our free transport service, which makes cancer treatment more accessible. In the past, patients have declined radiotherapy because coming into the hospital on a daily basis has been too difficult. The transport service ensures equity of care, and I know that many of my patients have formed new friendships on board too.

When you treat patients and spend time with their families, you can’t help but become part of their story. A few years ago, I had the privilege of treating a young girl called Molly who had been diagnosed with a rare and incurable cancer. Despite her diagnosis, Molly spent her last year spreading vital cancer awareness and raising funds for charity. She achieved so much in her lifetime, and it’s inspiring to see her friends and family continuing her legacy through Team Molly – which has raised an unbelievable £80,000 for Weston Park Cancer Charity.

Weston Park Cancer Centre is a world-class facility, and with your help we can make it even better. Right now, we’re aiming to raise £1.85m to bring a revolutionary MRI simulator to the hospital. By improving the accuracy of treatment, this powerful tool can reduce side effects and significantly improve outcomes for patients. Having the latest equipment also helps to attract the best researchers and the brightest minds to the hospital, which directly benefits local people.

Christmas can be a challenging time for our patients, but we do everything we can to make the hospital feel festive. Your support means so much at this time of the year. It allows us to buy presents for those who can’t be at home. It means we can take our youngest patients out to see a pantomime. And it helps us to fund clinical trials and treatments which extend lives – enabling people to have more Christmases with their loved ones.

If you’re considering making a Christmas donation, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I assure you that every penny you give will be treated with the utmost care. Together, we can make sure that everyone in our region lives well, with and beyond cancer.

With gratitude,

Dr Satya Garikipati

Join our 2025 Star Appeal and dedicate a star in remembrance, hope or thanks this Christmas.