Cancer Care Parcel Review : Gift Boxes Made With Love

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The Cancer Care Parcel is a heartfelt small UK business that provides lifestyle products and care packages, whether you’re buying for yourself or a loved one with cancer. As I’ll explain in this post, I think the care packages themselves and some other products sold can be well-suited to those with other chronic illness conditions. The company kindly gifted me one of their popular care packages so that I can share it here with you. I think this is a brilliant initiative and I’d highly recommend taking a look at what the Cancer Care Parcel offer. 

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What Is The Cancer Care Parcel?

The Cancer Care Parcel was founded by Dr Shara Cohen, who was a breast cancer patient herself in 2013. Her experience of the overwhelm after diagnosis and of friends avoiding her due to awkwardness is what got her to thinking about how to make a difference in this situation for others in future. She started up the Cancer Care Parcel to do just that and give patients back a little me-time calmness in their lives when they need it the most. 

The products provided, including their variety of fabulous care boxes, can be suitable for a range of buyers and recipients. Adults and children. All genders. Those with cancer. Friends, colleagues, partners and family of someone with cancer. The products and care packages can be practical, thoughtful and comforting in equal measure. 

>> View all Cancer Care Parcel products on Amazon <<

The Website

Cancer, similarly to other chronic illnesses and disabilities, can be a lonely experience capable of affecting all areas of life. It be as physically challenging as it is emotionally vicious.

What I love here is that the Cancer Care Parcel isn’t just a shop, it’s a home-base for all sorts of information and resources. This, combined with their social media, cultivates a community spirit and provides users with a support network. 

It’s a simple to use, intuitive website. When everything else in life is too hectic, you don’t need a site to add to the overwhelm. 

You’ll see a main navigation bar that showcases what you can find :

• Gifts – Searchable by age, gender, stage/treatment, and product type
• ‘Living With’ Products – Items for different needs and situations, from fatigue, empathy cards, bedridden products and hair loss help, to sleep, surgery, lip care, and nausea, and just about everything in between, in addition to a variety of books
• Care Parcels – A box-full of thoughtfully-selected goodies. There are currently 34 box types, ranging in content and price points from just £45.00 up to £199.00
• Support & Resources – An array of articles, advice, tips by email, posts to help friends and loved ones, quotes, cartoons, international directory, blogs and even an abbreviation dictionary
• Freebies – A collection of free services, products, support centres and more

Prices 

The Care Cancer Parcel is a registered limited company; it’s not a charity, nor is it government funded. 

The company does need to turn a profit, just like any for-profit company does. They have overheads, they need to cover their outlay and pay their staff. On top of that, they turn some profit into more good deeds, like putting it towards awareness campaigns, charity initiatives and gift box donations. It’s a cycle of goodness and compassion. 

“Our profit is used to support the cancer community and many people donate funds to us so that we can provide more gift packages to those who need them.”

Product Selection

While Shara’s experience kickstarted this company, the products aren’t based on just one person’s suggestions. They put a lot of time, thought and effort into selecting products and putting together their care parcels through liaising with their advisory board of cancer patients, as well as those in receipt of parcels to obtain their feedback. It’s always good to know a company wants to hear your thoughts and suggestions so they can use them for making what they offer even better where possible. 

What’s more, the gifts they sell here are “created and sold exclusively by us. You won’t find any other company selling our presents.” 

Payment Options

Payment methods accepted include: Visa (credit/debit), Mastercard (credit/debit), American Express & Paypal. Payments are made through a secure server. 

Their parcels and products can be purchased directly through their website. They can also be found and purchased on Etsy and Amazon. 

Delivery 

The care parcel packages can be delivered to the UK and the USA. 

All other gift products can be delivered Worldwide! 

The company aims to dispatch all orders placed before 2pm Monday to Friday the same day. Shipping costs depends on the items ordered and the country of delivery, which will be calculated during checkout.

They don’t advise you send a parcel directly to a hospital as there’s a chance it could get lost, and there are more stringent rules now around deliveries to patients on wards in light of the Covid19 pandemic. They note that hospices are a bit easier, but it’s best to check with the hospice first and let them know to expect a parcel delivery. 

Given how cancer is a very personal thing to go through, the Cancer Care Company have been careful to ensure parcels are delivered in a sensitive manner. They’ll come in a nondescript bag, and the box inside features the text “Someone thinking of you sent you this gift”. Only the packing paperwork will show it’s from the Cancer Care Parcel. There’s no mention of “cancer” for anyone picking up the package on delivery. There’s also no mention of any prices on the internal paperwork so that parcels  can be gifted directly to the recipient with peace of mind. 

Products & Gifts 

They have a fantastic range of items for different tastes, budgets, needs and requirements. While the products sold are aimed at cancer patients, many I’ve seen are actually well suited to those with other illnesses, conditions and disabilities. 

Gifts – 

Many of the gifts, such as clothing or stationery, are specific for cancer as they’re uniquely customised in the text used. Others, including some great wall art, are more widely applicable. The range is a great mix of empathetic, encouraging, caring and humorous. 

Living With Products – 

I love the range of products here as they’ve thought of everything, from shampoos to bed trays. The same applies here as with the gifts above in the sense that some will be more specific to cancer, and others could be equally useful for those with other health conditions and disabilities. For those undergoing chemo and experiencing hair loss, they have some brilliant headwear, caps and head scarves. There are seatbelt pillows for post-mastectomy to make being in a vehicle more comfortable. For those with other conditions, you’ll find the likes of pain rubs, colouring books, hand warmers, walking sticks, eco cotton buds, metal straws, dry skin creams, ginger nausea chews and even vomit bags, the latter of which I’ve wished I had to hand many times! 

Care Parcels –

The variety is such that there’s something for everyone and products are selected for convenient, practicality, usefulness, calming and comfort. You’ll find a full list of the content in each box on the relevant parcel page, along with photographs to get a good feel for what you’re getting.

My Experience of The Care Cancer Parcel 

To be clear, I’m not a cancer patient and nor am I a carer for someone with cancer. I’ve known people with cancer and cancer is in my extended family. I think many of us will have been touched by cancer in some way in our lifetime, even if we’re fortunate enough to be on the far reaches of it by knowing someone who has been through it. I can appreciate how important all of the products this company sells are. For loved ones, it allows us to show our care, concern and love for that person by giving them something that will both be useful and enjoyable. For those perhaps buying for themselves, it gives you the chance to take back some degree of control and to treat yourself a little.

The Company

I’ve been pleased with the communication with The Cancer Care Parcel, who’ve been kind and open in their messaging with me. I like that they make themselves easily contactable online, through email and social media, whether it’s for product and purchasing enquiries, or more general cancer-related support. Their ethos and what they stand for is heartening, and what they bring to people is very important. 

Ordering & Delivery 

The website was easy to navigate, select an item/package, go through checkout and purchase. I received an order confirmation email, then one to say the item had been dispatched, followed by  a DPD update email to advise of the delivery timeframe and finally a confirmation of successful delivery, so it all felt very structured and well-controlled for minimal stress and fuss. Mine was dispatched and delivered within 2 days, which was incredibly fast. After this, they’ve sent the odd follow-up email to let me know they’re here if I need any support, which is a wonderful way to reach out to people. 

The range is good, spanning different product types and price points. Prices may perhaps be a little higher on some things than you might be able to get elsewhere for similar products, but they won’t be the same items and you won’t get the same experience. With The Care Cancer Parcel, I like knowing that money is going to good places and causes, and it’s supporting a small business so that they can keep helping those that need it on their cancer journeys. 

The care parcels come in a plastic bag, as I mentioned above for keeping delivery private so nobody knows what’s inside. The box the products come in is nicely designed to brighten the recipient’s day and it’s also sturdy enough to protect everything inside it. Thanks to a large blanket and the neck pillow in mine, the inside didn’t need additional packing to keep smaller items secure and protected. 

The Deluxe Comfort Care Package For Chemo Patients

The Deluxe Comfort Care Package For Chemo Patients is what I was kindly gifted for this review.

I mentioned above about pricing, so the cost of this package at £99 plus delivery may seem a little pricey at first blush. The additional thing to consider here is if you were to create a parcel yourself, the costs really do add up quite quickly. I realised this on making little parcels for people before, including my dad for his birthday on a couple of occasions, where the big and small things can rack up costs more rapidly than you might first think. You’ll also need to either travel to various stores or order on various websites with their respective delivery charges to get the variety you need to fill a box. 

With a pre-made box, everything is well thought out so as to be relevant, enjoyable, practical and comforting. It’s incredibly convenient, you only pay one P&P charge for a box, and you can send it straight to your recipient. It’s a win-win and a worthwhile investment, especially when you think of what it’ll mean to the person you’re sending it to.

The products in this parcel have been carefully curated to ensure they’re suitable for most people, they’re soft and gentle, practical, and generally just well-suited to a person’s needs who has cancer and/or is going through chemo. 

I think the actual brands and designs can vary between boxes and over time, but the general gist of product types remains roughly the same so each box type is well defined. The box itself is recyclable and they pop a letter inside for the recipient.

My box included : 

Snuggly grey blanket / 550ml water bottle with flip straw / Reusable hand warmer / Anti-nausea wrist band / Anti-nausea ginger chews / Pencils for colouring / Adult colouring book / White in-ear earphones / Lip balm / Magic gloves / Peppermint herbal tea / Unisex black thermal socks / Neck travel cushion / Food cooler bag

The products in this particular box are good quality, nicely varied and are actually spot on for someone like me with chronic illness of a non-cancer kind. This is why I say that The Cancer Care products and parcels might be more widely applicable. I could see this being self-gifted to bring yourself some comfort, or gifted to another spoonie to put a smile on their face when they need it. 

If someone gifted this box to me, I’d be over the moon. If I gifted it to myself, I’d likewise be very pleased. I think the versatility here of both products and potential recipients is brilliant. 

♥ ♥ ♥

The Cancer Care Parcel Review : Compassion In A Box

When I first heard about the Cancer Care Parcel, I thought what a brilliant idea it was. Then I learned more about the company, the passion behind it, the donations they make, the support they provide and it gave me a better insight into the heart behind the brand. Their box ingredients are selected with care, delivery is prompt and the products are spot-on for those with cancer, and even those with other chronic conditions. 

I’d definitely recommend taking a look at the Cancer Care Parcel website to see what they do and what they offer. If you or a loved one has cancer, the support they offer alongside the products is priceless. 

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All Cancer Care Parcel products on Amazon

Caz  ♥

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[ This product was gifted in return for an honest review, which I have provided here ]