New Year’s Honours: MBE for inspirational Leeds doctor
Despite Terminal Cancer, English Doctor Inspires and Helps Others
by Lindsay Pantry
Published 30/12/2014 Yorkshire Evening Post
An inspirational doctor who became a consultant, raised almost £150,000 for charity and worked to change taboos surrounding death, all despite having terminal cancer, has been awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire).
Dr Kate Granger, an acting consultant in elderly medicine at Wakefield’s Pinderfields Hospital, said the honour was completely unexpected.
“When the letter came and looked all official, I thought I’d been chosen for jury service,” the 33-year-old from East Ardsley said. ”I couldn’t believe it.”
In 2011 Dr Granger was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive tumour known as DSRCT, which affects only one in two million people and has since spread to other parts of her body. But since then she has continued with her medical training, written two books, worked hard to bust taboos around death, campaigned to encourage health workers in hospitals to introduce themselves to patients and raised almost £150,000 for the Yorkshire Cancer Centre at St James Hospital.
She has been recognised for services to the NHS and improving care.
Dr Granger, who still works three days a week at Pinderfields, said: “My work is really important to me, it’s what I hope my legacy will be in this world. To be recognised from the top in the country is amazing.”
