Undergoing treatment for cancer can be an incredibly isolating experience for so many, but one Melbourne initiative is working to change that. The men's shed at Melbourne’s Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre has seen an influx of members since it opened three years ago, providing cancer patients and their families with vital social connection.
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00:00It's a space for people during their darkest times, and contrary to the title, it's not
00:09just for men.
00:10So I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer two days before Christmas.
00:18Susie started visiting the Peter Mac Men's Shed after undergoing her mastectomy.
00:23This is actually for a pantry.
00:25They're drawers for a pantry.
00:28Visitors use donated materials to construct items like drawers, cupboards and possum boxes
00:34for the community.
00:35You don't even need to be into woodwork, it's just a great space to hang out with like-minded
00:40people that have been through similar experiences.
00:43Liz was diagnosed with lung cancer 10 years ago, which spread to her spine before it collapsed
00:49in 2020.
00:50My autonomy's gone, me as a person has been taken away.
00:56Her husband Neil visits the shed while she receives treatment at the nearby hospital.
01:01I just enjoy it.
01:02So we're both doing something today together, but in separate little places across the road
01:06from each other.
01:07We both, it's like dancing on tables for me like I used to do, but I can't do the dancing
01:12on the table, but it's worked out magical for us.
01:17Wellbeing has also become a key part of patients' care inside the hospital.
01:22They can come out of being a cancer patient just for half an hour between appointments,
01:28have a cuppa, sit out in the garden, and people find that really valuable.
01:35There are over 360 sheds across Victoria, and this is the first in a hospital precinct.
01:41It's connecting patients and families with a community of like-minded peers.
01:46Hammering Home, an initiative for better mental health.
01:52Visit hammerhome.vic.gov.au for more information