Cancerkompisar

Cancerkompisar is a nationwide, non-profit organisation founded in 2012 to support carers of people with cancer, regardless of relationship. We start from the premise that a cancer diagnosis affects every part of life, and that carers themselves risk becoming unwell if they are left alone with responsibility, anxiety and grief.

At the heart of our work is our digital meeting place, cancerkompisar.se. Carers can register and receive suggested matches with others in a similar situation. When both people accept, they become “cancer buddies” and manage the contact themselves, via email, telephone or in-person meetings. The support is based on shared understanding, exchanging experience and human connection, and provides a free complement to healthcare services, municipal carer support and other interventions.

Around the platform, we build community and local networks through carer meet-ups, both online and in person, as well as an ambassador programme where carers who have received support choose to pass it on. Our ambassadors share information about Cancerkompisar, collaborate with healthcare services and municipal services, and initiate local activities for carers.

A third part of our work focuses on knowledge and influence. We develop and deliver talks and training on the carer perspective for healthcare services, municipal services, workplaces and other stakeholders. The aim is to strengthen the carer perspective in cancer care, increase awareness of available support, and contribute to clearer routines for noticing, asking, and signposting carers to further help. Through participation in councils, networks and development projects, we bring carers’ lived experience into decision-making and new ways of working.

Together, this forms a coherent support system, from the one-to-one match between two carers to training the professionals who meet them. Our goal is that no carer of a person with cancer