Celtic band aids Jowell’s cancer fight

Former MP Tessa Jowell has revealed how the music of a contemporary Celtic band has helped her fight brain cancer.

Baroness Jowell, the former Labour minister, was diagnosed with a high-grade brain tumour known as glioblastoma in May 2017, said she sings along to the Scottish band’s song Alive.

In a post on social media, Skipinnish said “it meant so much” to musicians when their music had an “uplifting emotional impact on people”.

Skipinnish was co-founded in 1999 by Angus Macphail from Tiree and Lochaber musician Andrew Steven.

The band’s numbers have grown over the years and today the members include musicians from Kyle of Lochalsh, Carloway on Lewis, West Calder in West Lothian and Bishopton in Renfrewshire.

Baroness Jowell also said cancer patients should be free to take the risk of undergoing different innovative treatments on the NHS.

The former cabinet minister called for more opportunities for “adaptive trials” in which patients can undergo different treatments, and if one does not work they can immediately move on to the next.