Supporting People at Work When Cancer Touches Their Lives
Cancer does not pause when someone comes to work.
Across Bermuda, employees are quietly balancing cancer alongside their professional lives, attending medical appointments between meetings, managing treatment side effects, supporting a spouse or parent through chemotherapy, or navigating their own diagnosis while trying to maintain normalcy.
Many do this silently.
Colleagues want to help but don’t always know what to say. Managers want to be supportive but may feel uncertain about how to respond. Leaders recognise the importance of wellbeing, yet cancer can still feel like a difficult conversation to begin.
Cancer Conversations exists to change that.
Why This Conversation Belongs in the Workplace
As Bermuda’s only independent, nonprofit cancer centre, Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre sees first-hand the realities patients and families navigate, including while continuing to work.
Work can provide stability, purpose, and connection during uncertain times. It can also be a source of stress if illness and caregiving are not understood or acknowledged.
When organisations create space for honest conversation about cancer:
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Employees feel seen and supported
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Stigma and silence are reduced
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Early detection is encouraged
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Leaders gain confidence in responding with compassion
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Workplace culture strengthens
This is not a medical seminar.
It is a leadership conversation.
What Is Cancer Conversations?
Cancer Conversations is a workplace initiative led by Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre in partnership with cancer survivor and business leader Brian Madeiros.
Each session creates a respectful, guided space for open dialogue around:
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The realities of cancer in Bermuda
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Early detection and screening
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The lived experience of diagnosis and survivorship
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Supporting colleagues with empathy and confidence
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The role leadership plays in shaping workplace culture
Sessions are open to all staff, but they begin with leadership support. When senior management endorses these conversations, it signals that wellbeing is not peripheral, it is part of organisational responsibility.
What Happens When Companies Open the Conversation
Since launching Cancer Conversations:
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Six Bermuda-based companies have hosted sessions
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87% of participants rated the experience as extremely or very valuable
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70% reported taking early detection action
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96% shared that cancer has personally affected them or someone close to them
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91% spoke to others about what they learned after attending
The impact extends beyond the session itself. Conversations continue. Screenings are booked. Colleagues feel more confident offering support. Leaders better understand what members of their teams may already be navigating.
This is cultural change in motion.
Who Leads the Sessions?
Cancer Conversations is led by:
Brian Madeiros
Cancer survivor and business leader, bringing lived experience and perspective from within the corporate community. Brian will share his courageous battle with cancer, offering a unique perspective on the challenges, triumphs, and lessons he has learned along the way. His story is sure to inspire and touch the hearts of all attendees, reminding us of the strength and resilience that cancer patients possess. Discussion and exploration topics will include the importance of early detection, and the impact medical trauma (cancer or otherwise) has on one’s emotional and mental well-being.
Dr Chris Fosker
Medical Director and Clinical Oncologist at Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre, providing medical insight grounded in local cancer care. Chris will provide insights into the vital work being done by Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre in supporting individuals affected by cancer.
Together, they combine experience, expertise, and authenticity, creating conversations that are informed, balanced, and deeply human.
A Practical, Thoughtful Format
Sessions are:
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Designed to fit within the working day
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Appropriate for mixed audiences and leadership teams
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Respectful and professionally guided
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Focused on awareness, empathy, and practical understanding
They are not designed to alarm.
They are designed to equip.
Lead With Compassion
Cancer already exists in your organisation, whether visible or not.
Cancer Conversations gives leaders an opportunity to acknowledge that reality, strengthen workplace culture, and demonstrate meaningful support for their people.
If you are interested in bringing Cancer Conversations to your organisation, we would welcome a conversation.
When was it launched ?
“Cancer Conversations” was introduced to our community in 2024.
Read more in this Royal Gazette story.
Aready participated in a Cancer Conversation session - thank you!
Where do we go from here:
Contact us to learn more:
info@chc.bm
