Kat Southwell (nee Lee)

On behalf of all the Trustees, volunteers and supporters of METUPUK, we would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations to our Founder, Jo Taylor, for being awarded the British Empire Medal in The King's New Year Honours List 2025. A much deserved recognition for years of work in improving outcomes and quality of life for patients with breast cancer. Jo was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 at the age of 38, months after giving birth to her second child. After diagnosis, Jo was shocked by the lack of information on reconstructive surgical options for patients with breast cancer. To address this gap, she created the website After Breast Cancer Diagnosis (ABCD). Jo later added information on diet and exercise and set up residential Exercise Retreats for patients with a diagnosis of primary or metastatic (secondary) breast cancer. When Jo was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) in 2014 she once again became aware of lack of information being provided to patients. Although 30% of patients develop MBC, sometimes years after primary breast cancer, women were not being informed about what to look out for. Jo designed a Red Flag Infographic aimed at patients with a history of primary breast cancer to show the signs and symptoms of MBC. These Infographics are now signposted throughout the NHS. In 2016, Jo founded METUPUK after connecting with patient advocates in the USA. At first it was a loose coalition of likeminded patients campaigning for improvements in outcomes. In 2021 METUPUK became a registered charity, the only UK charity solely dedicated to patient advocacy for MBC. The four main areas of focus are increasing awareness of the signs and symptoms of metastatic breast cancer, increasing access to innovative treatments, improving information and access to clinical trials and improvements in data collection. We are very lucky to have Jo as our Founder and Chair of Trustees. Thank you for all your hard work.

Winner of Celebrity #Mastermind is @TerryChristian! 🏆 Fantastic that he beat all the other celebrities & very kindly supports #METUPUK as his chosen charity & thankful of his ongoing support Congratulations Terry! You're always our winner! @CliveMyrieBBC @mastermindquiz

We're run by volunteers, most living with #metastaticbreastcancer & we rely on efforts & collaboration of individuals like you. We're behind some monumental changes over the UK. Exciting developments are happening. Will you be a part of it in Wales? ---> [email protected]