A 57-year-old cancer nurse from Eltham has been honoured with a prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award in honour of her "inspirational work supporting people living with cancer in London."

Amanda Shewbridge was presented with the award at the Macmillan Excellence Awards by the event's host, actor Larry Lamb, in front of 450 healthcare professionals.

Following a career spanning more than 30 years, Ms Shewbridge was recognised for her tireless and inventive contribution to the improvement of cancer care services.

After receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award, she said: “I feel really lucky to have enjoyed the career that I’ve had over the last 30 years in cancer nursing.

"There’s been such changes to how we manage and treat cancer patients, but also how the roles of healthcare professionals have developed along the way.

“I’ve had some amazing colleagues and met some fantastic patients, so to get this award at this point of my career is just the icing on the cake.”

Amanda qualified as a nurse in 1984 and started out working at Guy's Hospital.

She worked as lead nurse for cancer services at Bromley Hospitals NHS Trust and later the consultant nurse in breast cancer at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust where she introduced effective nurse-led diagnostic services and end-of-treatment clinics.

In 2017, Amanda became the MacMillan Nurse Programme Lead for Living with and Beyond Cancer at South East London Accountable Cancer Network, and she has also completed several research projects including a PhD.

Daniel Callanan, acting Macmillan Partnership Manager for south east London, commented: “These awards, which are now in their eighth year, are the perfect opportunity for us to recognise and thank pioneering individuals who deliver the highest standards of care for people living with cancer.

“Amanda has worked tirelessly to influence, challenge and improve outcomes and experiences for people living with cancer in London and the South East of England.

"She is a most worthy winner and everyone at Macmillan Cancer Support is incredibly grateful for her outstanding work on behalf of people impacted by cancer.”

Macmillan is a charity and relies almost entirely on donations, so if you'd like to support their work visit macmillan.org.uk/getinvolved.