hatice’s story
Food bank a lifeline for cancer patient
Hatice Hussyin, 62, was diagnosed with bowel, liver and lung cancer in 2017 and has endured lengthy spells of chemotherapy.
The grandmother and mother of two survives on disability allowance and grants from Macmillan Cancer Support.
She said: “I worry about money a lot. When I have chemotherapy, I feel the cold and now that the cost of heating is so expensive, I keep warm by wearing boots and socks, PJs and dressing gowns and I pile blankets onto my bed.
“This is the hardest I’ve ever known things – in the 80s when I was bringing up two kids, I still managed. People are really suffering.
“Having help from Hackney Foodbank makes a big difference. I would have been more stressed out and would have cried every day without them. Without the food bank, I think a lot of people would be dead. There shouldn’t be poverty like this.”
When lockdown happened, Hatice became increasingly isolated and depressed – fearful of contracting the virus. The Government’s food parcels helped see her through and afterwards, when her health deteriorated and she struggled with the rising costs of living, she turned to the food bank.
She added: “I try hard not to be stressed about the money situation or food – for my health I need to keep my mind in a good place.”
Hatice had a troubled childhood of poverty and barely attended secondary school – from the age of 13 she worked in South London selling street food and worked on an ice-cream stall.
Pat Fitzsimons, CEO of Hackney Foodbank, said: “Ill health can happen to anyone - in the blink of an eye someone can go from managing to struggling to afford even the basics. Sadly, Hatice’s story is all too familiar - at the time the system should be giving people the most support, they’re left in the cold with no choice but to depend on food banks. The rising cost of living is causing unprecedented demand here at the food bank.”