Peterborough care worker now able to take husband to hospital for cancer treatment after winning new car

A Peterborough care worker whose husband has cancer can now take him to his hospital appointments for treatment after winning a new car.

Stacey Phillips, from Bretton, works as a care assistant at Eagle Wood Neurological Care Centre, in Bretton Way, and won a new Fiat 500 in a raffle run by her employer, PJ Care.

Her husband, Michael, was diagnosed with skin cancer two years ago. After a period of remission, Michael found out that the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes, which are small clusters of cells located across the body.

Michael finished a programme of radiotherapy when Stacey started her job in December 2021. He is having treatment at Addenbrookes Hospital, in Cambridgeshire – a hour-long journey from their home, which they make every six weeks.

“I am so grateful to have won,” Stacey said. “My car was on the blink and I was really worried about how I was going to get my husband to his appointments – it’s taken all the worry away.

"I wasn’t sure how much longer my car would be able to do the trip. When I went home and told my family they didn’t believe me.”

It’s the second year in a row that PJ Care, which runs the Eagle Wood Neurological Care Centre, has given staff the chance to win a new car.

The centre cares for adults with progressive neurological conditions – such as young onset dementia and Parkinson’s disease, and acquired brain injuries.

PJ Care chairman, Neil Russell, said: “We’re delighted that the car will make such a difference to Stacey and her family.

"We ran the car raffle last year as a reward for staff facing the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic. We felt it was important to continue to recognise the efforts of our team, so we decided to run it again.

“If it encourages just two members of staff to stay and develop their careers with us, it will have been a great investment as recruiting and training new staff is very expensive, as is bringing in agency staff.

“But for Stacey we know it’s invaluable, and that makes us very happy.”