SARAH BROWN

One Sunday at the end of February, I made my first visit to the Maggie's Cancer Caring Centre in Glasgow. Outside, it is a handsome Victorian gatehouse, right beside the Western Infirmary. When you get inside the door, there's a sense of lightness and space. As patron of Maggie's, I have spent some time in these remarkable cancer caring centres. What struck me most on this visit - as it always does - is the extraordinary spirit of the people who come in, and the strength they draw from each other and from coming to the centre.

At the Glasgow centre, I met a group of men and women affected by cancer who come here for courses, groups and workshops that are specially designed to help them live better with this life-threatening disease. They also drop in to the centre whenever they want. For them it is a welcoming building where they can feel at home, make themselves a cup of tea, share a laugh or get through a crisis. It is their place.

We sat in one of the rooms where people meet for group and relaxation sessions and I heard their stories. One common theme was the sudden and disorienting nature of cancer. It comes along and hits you like a blow from nowhere. You are living your life - and then suddenly everything seems uncertain. You have to get through the treatment, which is exhausting and traumatic enough, but you also have to deal with the impact of the disease on the rest of your life, not least on the family. (Maggie's is there for family and friends as well as those with a diagnosis, and is much valued for this.) A number of people in the group spoke of how Maggie's had made an enormous difference to their day-to-day lives and overall adjustment to the disease. It is a place they can go that helps them find ways to cope with a particularly stressful and specific set of demands, be they physical, emotional or psychological.

Sometimes it was a matter of practical help. One woman described how she kept on working throughout treatment but desperately needed a bit of time to recuperate. She had used up all her holiday time and couldn't afford a week off. With advice, she managed to get a grant that enabled her to have a break when she needed it most. Carol, the benefits adviser at Maggie's Glasgow, tells people what money they are eligible for and helps them fill in the forms.

Like everything at Maggie's, there is no charge for such advice sessions. The centre head, Maureen Fee, also told me about a new free bus service, Maggie's Gives You a Lift, that picks people up from their homes so people can get to the centre more easily and at no cost. It is all about making the centre accessible to everyone.

I was also impressed by the number of men who come to Maggie's. Often men are more reluctant to get such support, but the down-to-earth atmosphere and specialist groups mean this is a place they want to go.

Maureen took me on a tour of the building and I saw the more private spaces within it, where people go to talk or just to sit quietly. The middle of the building is open-plan, anchored by a big kitchen table. People gravitate towards this spot, as you do in a home. It's a place of natural warmth, companionship and - of course - a cup of tea. Maggie's is far from being gloomy: it is an uplifting place. You always seem to hear laughter as well as people sharing their stories and getting through some dark times in the best way possible. At the most fundamental level, it helps to talk; and to talk to people who really do understand what you are going through. This is part of the special and unobtrusive atmosphere that is part of the way the centres work so well.

I also like the way Maggie's has experts who can offer specialist help on many aspects of cancer: the shock of the diagnosis, ways to relax so you can feel less stressed, learning how to slightly adjust your diet to help your body recover, finding out information about your treatment so you can get the most from your medical team. The Look Good Feel Better sessions show women how to use cosmetics. The women I talked to spoke of their relief at feeling free to take off their wigs, to put the make-up on and talk: it was, they said, like a mask falling away. Here, they could be themselves and be real about their cancer.

GETTING INVOLVED: Sarah Brown on a visit to the Glasgow Maggie's Centre in February 2008. Picture: Ashley Coombes

One of the people who has spent much time in Maggie's Glasgow, Sheila Hughes, recently described how she felt about Maggie's. "Cancer is like going on a journey to a strange country," she wrote. "You don't know if you are going to survive the journey; you have no map or compass and you have to drag your family along with you. Maggie's has helped others make that journey many times before and, although you make your own map, it's so much easier using the advice of Maggie's friendly guides."

I came away from Maggie's with that thought. It's clear why Maggie's has such fantastic support, with people taking part in local fundraisers and big events such as Monster Bike and Hike in May. They are places that help people, in the way that they want and at one of the most difficult and stressful times that any of us may have to face in our lifetime.

This visit really highlighted to me how many people have taken the charity to heart in Scotland. It has grown rapidly since the first centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996. There are now five Maggie's Centres - the others are in Dundee, Kirkcaldy and Inverness - and an interim Maggie's is opening in Wishaw at the start of April. People in England and Wales are now getting behind Maggie's, too. The first English centre opens in London this spring, and there are plans to build five more in the next five years, in Newcastle, Nottingham, the Cotswolds, south-west Wales and Oxford.

Clearly, people see a need for places like these near their hospital, built and run to a high standard. The reason I am involved in Maggie's is the same reason that so many people in Scotland support their centres and want to keep them going for the long term. More people are getting cancer and more people are living with the disease. An increasing number of people would benefit from a Maggie's Centre at any stage, from diagnosis onwards. And it matters that each centre is championed by its community and has widespread and steady grassroots support. In a sense, the centres belong to the people who use them and who fund them, and who know Maggie's will be there to help anyone who is touched by the dark shadow of this life-threatening disease.