Writing Excellence – General

Summary of work

More than 900,000 people are diagnosed with blood cancer every year, yet it doesn’t have visibility. There are 140 types of blood cancers and their disparate nature creates a lack of awareness, resulting in severe gaps in healthcare delivery. So how do you make the invisible visible? In response to this challenge, the ‘Make Blood Cancer Visible’ campaign was born.

The campaign encouraged people to share their experiences with blood cancer, driving increased awareness and prioritisation. The centrepiece was a short, scripted film showing the emotional struggle of patients.

We wanted to launch our film on social media, so created a script that would cut through social media noise and be relatable for those living with blood cancers, prompting them to share the film. The struggles of patients inspired our writing. We took viewers inside the patients’ minds - making them aware of what people living with blood cancer go through every day.

The results? The video was viewed more than 600,000 times and translated into nine languages. Our Facebook patient community membership increased 46%, allowing patients to share support with one another. The overall campaign reached more than 44 million people, giving blood cancers visibility like never before.

Judges' comments

A creative use of patient stories with well-edited quotes, an engaging video with a great script. All the elements combined to produce a lovely, emotional campaign that had amazing impact.