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Employing more than 2,700 nurses, doctors and other healthcare
professionals, we expect to provide care to around 27,000 terminally
ill patients in the community and in our hospices this year, along
with support for their families.
We mainly care for people with cancer but we also care for people
with other life limiting illnesses. Our services are always free of
charge to patients and their families, which means that in 2007-08,
we will need to raise more than £115 million.
The charity is best known for its network of Marie Curie Nurses
working in the community to provide end-of-life care for patients in
their own homes.
We have 10 hospices across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern
Ireland, and two centres for palliative care research. We also run
the world-renowned Marie Curie Research Institute, which
investigates the causes and treatments of cancer.
Since 2004, Marie Curie Cancer Care has been campaigning for more
patients to be able to make the choice to be cared for and die at
home.
Research shows around 70 per cent of people would like to die at
home if they had a terminal illness, with a sizeable minority opting
for hospice care.
However, more than 50 per cent of cancer deaths still occur in
hospital, the place people say they would least like to be.
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