Catching a way back from cancer

Oct 2 2007 by Simon Hart, Western Mail

NOW and then the opportunity to become involved in a potentially life-changing project comes along. Recently the Countryside Alliance seized the opportunity to help establish Casting for Recovery retreats.

Casting for Recovery was initially set up in the USA in 1996, and although the link between breast cancer recovery and fishing is not immediately apparent, fly- fishing retreats offer huge benefits. The first UK retreat took place last month at Duncton Mill, West Sussex.

Casting for Recovery UK and Ireland is a non-profit organisation that has been working for the past year to ensure the first retreat was a huge success. Director Sue Hunter and her volunteers helped 11 women to benefit from the weekend.

The organisation is a support and educational group for women who have, or have had, breast cancer, offering the opportunity for women whose lives have been affected by the disease to gather in a beautiful, natural setting, learn fly-fishing and meet new friends.

Sue Hunter has suffered from the disease herself and is the current captain of the England Ladies Fly-Fishing Association. She has been fighting to bring the organisation to the UK.

The art of fly-fishing, from casting to catching the first fish, provides gentle exercise for joint and soft-tissues, similar to exercises recommended by physiotherapists to aid recovery.

The surroundings provide social support and group interactions for sufferers, and reduce the feelings of isolation sometimes associated with the disease.

They offer a forum for women with similar experiences to meet and learn a new skill that could aid their general recovery, as well as offering respite from their everyday concerns. Participants learn the fundamentals of fly casting, ento- mology, knot-tying and equipment, and focus on learning the art of catch-and- release fishing on the water.

Everyone is encouraged to progress at their own speed.

The first retreat was hugely oversubscribed.

There is now particular interest in establishing a Welsh base for the organisation in Carmarthenshire.

Simon Hart is chief executive of the Countryside Alliance