Meet the team at Orchid! We’re a small, hard working team, committed to supporting men with male cancer. We are passionate about spreading awareness of the signs and symptoms of male cancer so that men are diagnosed early and receive the best outcomes.
Chief Executive and Director, Active Participation in Male Cancer Awareness in Prisons Programme
Ali has over 30 years of executive management experience in the field of Public Health, specialising in cancer prevention, HIV and within the third sector.
A trained nurse and qualified social worker, Ali is a BSc Honours graduate of Sociology Applied Social Studies with CQSW (Certificate of Qualification in Social Work). He is also trained in BSL Stage I & II (British Sign Language) and also holds a certificate in Training & Development.
Prior to Orchid, Ali worked for The British Heart Foundation (BHF), The Prostate Cancer Charity (TPCC) and NAZ Project London, where he oversaw national and regional strategies.
Ali is known for his innovative, mixed-media approaches to health messaging. He developed and produced the acclaimed short film, “A Letter to my Unpresented Self” to help healthcare professionals better understand diagnosis of prostate cancer in the black African and black Caribbean communities. He has also produced the short film ‘Uncle Mike’ which explores a young man’s mission to raise awareness of prostate cancer following the death of his uncle.
With a proven track record in procurement and fundraising, Ali is experienced in securing full cost recovery funding for public cancer awareness programmes.
As a passionate advocate of accessible and inclusive services, Ali believes the intersectional experiences of marginalised people’s lives must be recognised and addressed if the gap between poor health outcomes for different communities is to be reduced.
Male Cancer Information Nurse Specialist
Rob has been with Orchid for over 10 years. In his different roles he has met literally thousands of men affected by male cancer and gained a valuable insight into the information that they need. He is a firm advocate of both written and verbal information, having learnt from experience that both make a huge difference to patients and their families. Rob is well respected by peers within the male cancer field and our monitoring shows how callers to our Helpline value his expertise, understanding and support. He has also been the chair of a large prostate cancer support group based in Essex, PHASE, as well as supporting other peer support groups for testicular and penile cancer. Rob’s expertise led to Orchid working closely with eUROGEN a European organisation dedicated to improving the outcomes for rare urological conditions by enabling equitable access to diagnosis, treatment, and care for patients across Europe. Along with two independent patient advocates Rob is an advocate for penile and testicular cancer for eUROGEN. He also represents penile and testicular cancer advocacy on behalf of Orchid within the European Association of Urology, (EAU) Patient Advocacy Group. Both these roles have led to him giving talks at International Conferences including the EAU Congress in Amsterdam and Milan, the largest urological conference in Europe. This passion for improving support and outcomes for those affected by penile led to the creation of Penile Cancer International Awareness Day which now follows on from Orchid’s Male Cancer Awareness Week.
Rob qualified as a Registered General Nurse (RGN) in 1991 at Barking Havering and Redbridge Hospitals NHS Trust (BHR) where he had undertaken his training.
He began work as a staff nurse on the urology ward and continued to work within urology at BHR for the next 12 years, becoming Charge Nurse in 1997. He left the ward in 2003 and took up the position of a Clinical Trials Nurse with St Bartholomew’s Hospital, a post partially funded by Orchid.
In 2004 Rob became Uro-oncology Clinical Nurse Specialist at BHR and remained in this post until 2013. He was the designated key worker for anyone diagnosed with urological malignancy.
He also leads the Orchid Patient Advocacy Group (OPAG).
In his spare time, Rob enjoys 40s and 50s music, reading esoteric non-fiction and strumming his Gretsch guitar.
Male Cancer Information Nurse Specialist – Penile Cancer
Sinéad began her nursing career at The Christie in Manchester, and it was during her 13 years in oncology nursing that she developed her interest in urology oncology and penile cancer in particular. Having completed her nursing degree and advanced Practitioner Master’s degree, Sinéad developed nurse led clinical services before moving to Maggie’s cancer support charity. She joined the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance during the pandemic as a project manager and later led services in urgent care.
Project Manager
The Project Manager for our ‘Active Participation in Male Cancer Awareness in Prisons Programme’. She has a wealth of experience with marginalised and BAME communities around sexual health, sexual orientation, gender identity and male specific cancers.
Julia specialises in counselling and developing educational programmes around self-esteem and body image for LGBTQIA+ communities. She has organised and delivered educational workshops, seminars and awareness events. These have been designed to help individuals to overcome misconceptions about various sexual health topics and prostate cancer.
Social Media and Engagement Manager
Rehana joined the team in July 2022, supporting us with multi-media content through photography, video and graphic design.
Rehana has over 10 years of experience enhancing the online presence of various businesses and institutions.
She gives her time and skills to charitable organisations such as the Aga Khan Development Network. As part of her involvement, she is collaborating with scholars from around the world to share their research on rare Islamic manuscripts and coins. Some of these artefacts have never been publicly displayed and the goal is to educate graduates, academics and the public. This project will mark the second in the series, which Rehana has been involved in since its inception.
Trusts and Statutory Manager
Margaid joined the charity in 2014 and is one of the longest serving members of the Orchid team. She is responsible for securing income from Charitable Trusts and Foundations and the National Lottery Community Fund. She is also exploring statutory funding opportunities. She is happy to provide tailored information about Orchid’s work for which funding is needed, to meet funders, and to answer questions in support of applications. One of her favourite parts of the role is reporting to funders on the difference their grants have made.
Margaid has many years’ experience of both specific and broad fundraising areas. This has been gained in charities such as Help the Aged (now Aged UK), Imperial Cancer Research Fund (now CRUK), UNICEF, NSPCC, and Maggie’s.
She has always had a real passion for equality of opportunity and access for all to services, and this has increased both through her fundraising roles and her volunteering experience. Volunteering has included spending many hours listening to children read in her children’s schools and helping young people access sporting development. As a committee member of Haringey Aquatics, she helped secure funding to benefit young people across the borough. She also served as a Trustee and Chair of Home-Start Haringey and a Trustee and Company Secretary of the Haringey Migrant Support Centre.
Family and friendships are important to Margaid and play a huge part in what she does when she is not working. She enjoys walking, Pilates, reading and exploring new areas.
Community and Events Fundraising Manager
Corporate Partnerships Manager
Ashleeka has been working in the charity sector for 5 years, specifically within fundraising. She has a broad range of knowledge from corporate partnerships to individual giving and has worked for large and small organisations.
Her skills lie in relationship management, stewardship and engagement and has account managed companies to fundraise 6 figures.
Ashleeka is deeply passionate about equity, diversity and inclusion. Making sure the voices and experiences of the most marginalised groups in society are seen and heard.
Office Administrator
Shreejit joined the team in September 2020 to handle general office administration including financial reporting.
He has 14 years’ experience within the NHS. This has included working as a Cancer MDT (Multi-Disciplinary Team) Co-ordinator within a variety of specialities including Urology. With over 12 years of administration experience, Shreejit deals with general queries and information distribution for a variety of clinical areas.
He enjoys music, travel and film.
Matthew Stephens is responsible for identifying suitable venues and organising Roadshows in collaboration with the Community Engagement Team. With a focus on outreach and engagement, Matthew ensures successful delivery of these events, fostering connections and raising awareness within communities. His role is integral to creating meaningful interactions and driving impactful initiatives.
Male Cancer Information Manager
Suresh has over 30 years of experience in cancer nursing, and extensive experience in cancer information.
He has worked for the NHS, Cancer Backup, Cancerlink, Prostate Cancer UK, Macmillan and Orchid. Throughout his career, he has worked tirelessly helping hospitals and other health facilities improve their service provision, making them appropriate and sensitive to the needs of patient religions, customs and culture.
Suresh’s area of specialisation is prostate cancer and he was the first person from a Black or Ethnic Minority in the UK to be appointed a Cancer Information Specialist (CIS). In 2013 he was awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his contribution within the NHS and voluntary/charitable sector.
He has played a vital role at our Male Cancer Roadshows across the UK.
Male Cancer Information Nurse Specialist
Katherine is an Orchid part-time Male Cancer Information Nurse.
Born in Zimbabwe, Katherine came to the UK in 1990. She trained at the Princess Alexandra and Newham School of Nursing and Midwifery – Royal London Hospital to become a Registered General Nurse (RGN). From the time she arrived in the UK, Katherine knew that she wanted to work as a specialist cancer nurse and moved into this area after qualifying.
Among many experiences of cancer nursing, Katherine has worked as a GRASP Project Co-ordinator for cancer services. GRASP is a workload measurement tool that assists in the management of nursing services. In 2000 she received a BENTLEY award for best nursing and best achievement at Barts and the London Hospital for her work with GRASP technology.
Katherine decided to specialise in Haematology Oncology Nursing in 2001. This gave her an interest in new cancer treatments. It also made her want to spend more time educating people and supporting cancer patients and relatives.
In 2004, she had the opportunity to work as Research Nurse funded by Orchid, specialising in prostate and testicular cancer. She continues to work for Orchid, providing advice and support to men with male cancer.
In her free time, Katherine enjoys gardening, sewing and DIY. She teaches bead jewellery making and sewing in the summer and half term holidays.
